Burney Co. Boosts Holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Burney Co. raised its holdings in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 6.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,092 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 198 shares during the period. Burney Co.’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $512,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First United Bank & Trust bought a new position in AutoNation in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in AutoNation in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of AutoNation in the first quarter worth $33,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Avalon Trust Co acquired a new position in AutoNation during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of AN traded down $13.21 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $170.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 672,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 439,837. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. AutoNation, Inc. has a one year low of $123.81 and a one year high of $197.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $168.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $158.97.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 36.28%. The company had revenue of $6.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoNation announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, April 26th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 14.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 23,703 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.29, for a total value of $4,083,789.87. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,980,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,794,659.43. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 23,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.29, for a total value of $4,083,789.87. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,980,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,794,659.43. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 53,562 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 owns 3,825,838 shares in the company, valued at $740,108,361.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 177,265 shares of company stock worth $32,066,359. Company insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on AutoNation from $164.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of AutoNation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on AutoNation from $169.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.00.

AutoNation Company Profile

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.