Royce & Associates LP Reduces Stock Holdings in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

Royce & Associates LP trimmed its position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 38.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 61,747 shares of the company’s stock after selling 38,476 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $14,732,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Natixis purchased a new position in Asbury Automotive Group in the first quarter worth about $896,000. Boston Partners purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $878,000. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $537,000. Bridges Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $760,000. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,017,000.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Down 1.3 %

NYSE ABG opened at $258.18 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $233.22 and its 200 day moving average is $234.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $195.09 and a 12 month high of $277.13. The stock has a market cap of $5.06 billion, a PE ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 1.16.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.58 by ($0.23). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 2.16%. The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $8.12 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 25.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Stephens assumed coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com raised Asbury Automotive Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $190.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $256.20.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.