Wells Fargo & Company Boosts AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Price Target to $169.00

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) had its price objective increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $153.00 to $169.00 in a research report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an outperform rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com downgraded AutoNation from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Bank of America dropped their price target on AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley upgraded AutoNation from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating and lifted their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AutoNation presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $175.38.

AutoNation Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of AutoNation stock opened at $162.85 on Monday. AutoNation has a 52-week low of $123.81 and a 52-week high of $182.08. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $155.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $145.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.79.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.04. AutoNation had a return on equity of 42.44% and a net margin of 3.41%. The business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.05 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AutoNation will post 18.83 EPS for the current year.

AutoNation declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Friday, April 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 14.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total value of $1,669,866.24. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,267,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $659,640,441.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director David B. Edelson sold 10,000 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.00, for a total value of $1,680,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 48,793 shares in the company, valued at $8,197,224. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total transaction of $1,669,866.24. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,267,860 shares in the company, valued at $659,640,441.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 131,279 shares of company stock valued at $21,041,962 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoNation

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 43.9% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $420,000 after buying an additional 774 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 32,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,393,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of AutoNation by 27.8% in the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 23,206 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,843,000 after buying an additional 5,055 shares during the period. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the 1st quarter worth about $210,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of AutoNation by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 97,885 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,208,000 after acquiring an additional 2,497 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

About AutoNation

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.