Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.30

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, August 5th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of 0.30 per share on Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th.

Sonic Automotive has raised its dividend by an average of 42.6% per year over the last three years. Sonic Automotive has a dividend payout ratio of 19.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Sonic Automotive to earn $6.26 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 19.2%.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of Sonic Automotive stock opened at $54.19 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.10 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $58.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $55.94. Sonic Automotive has a 12 month low of $41.19 and a 12 month high of $64.68.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $3.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.56 billion. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 25.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Sonic Automotive will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SAH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on Sonic Automotive from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.40.

Insider Transactions at Sonic Automotive

In related news, CFO Heath Byrd sold 19,827 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $1,189,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 173,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,417,080. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 40.95% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.