HCR Wealth Advisors Trims Stock Position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

HCR Wealth Advisors reduced its stake in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,657 shares of the company’s stock after selling 227 shares during the quarter. AutoNation makes up about 0.6% of HCR Wealth Advisors’ holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. HCR Wealth Advisors’ holdings in AutoNation were worth $4,412,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AN. Quadrature Capital Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 91.2% during the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 19,248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,891,000 after buying an additional 9,182 shares in the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 4th quarter valued at $369,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 97.5% during the 4th quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda now owns 1,835 shares of the company’s stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 906 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 359.0% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 840 shares of the company’s stock valued at $139,000 after buying an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Davis Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 14.7% during the 1st quarter. Davis Capital Management now owns 9,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,557,000 after buying an additional 1,208 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 53,562 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.45, for a total value of $10,361,568.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,825,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $740,108,361.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.21, for a total value of $17,621,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,880,467 shares in the company, valued at $683,777,090.07. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 53,562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.45, for a total value of $10,361,568.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,825,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $740,108,361.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 193,256 shares of company stock valued at $35,262,954 in the last quarter. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AN traded up $1.78 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $165.32. 551,242 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 414,658. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.81 and a 1 year high of $197.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $171.40 and a 200 day moving average of $167.50.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.31 by ($0.32). AutoNation had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 36.50%. The business had revenue of $6.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.29 EPS. AutoNation’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of AutoNation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $145.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of AutoNation in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on AutoNation from $164.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.75.

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.