Geode Capital Management LLC Cuts Stake in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

Geode Capital Management LLC cut its position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 466,610 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,131 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $111,349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 34.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the second quarter worth approximately $155,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $190,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stephens started coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America lowered their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $190.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $256.20.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

NYSE:ABG opened at $243.51 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 1.20. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $247.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $238.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.77 billion, a PE ratio of 13.78 and a beta of 1.18. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $195.09 and a 52-week high of $277.13.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $8.12 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

About Asbury Automotive Group

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.