Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Upgraded to Hold at UBS Group

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) was upgraded by analysts at UBS Group to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Stephens cut their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $277.00 to $254.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $260.00 to $212.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $233.50.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of ABG stock opened at $195.08 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.91, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.78. The company’s 50 day moving average is $195.90 and its 200 day moving average is $218.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. Asbury Automotive Group has a 52-week low of $172.01 and a 52-week high of $274.50.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $5.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.62 by ($0.25). The business had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.37 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.05% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.82 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Asbury Automotive Group will post 25.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director B. Christopher Disantis bought 157 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $182.31 per share, for a total transaction of $28,622.67. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 6,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,166,784. The trade was a 2.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 631.4% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 7,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,720,000 after buying an additional 6,074 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 1,570.2% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 9,086 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,113,000 after buying an additional 8,542 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 261.7% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 159,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,025,000 after buying an additional 115,504 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 0.5% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,104,168 shares of the company’s stock worth $269,906,000 after buying an additional 5,757 shares during the period. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 14.4% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 76,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,739,000 after buying an additional 9,632 shares during the period.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc (NYSE:ABG) is one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States. Headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, the company operates a network of franchised dealerships representing a diverse portfolio of automotive brands. Its core business activities include the sale of new and pre-owned vehicles, as well as the provision of vehicle finance, insurance and protection products to retail customers.

In addition to retail sales, Asbury offers a comprehensive suite of after-sales services, from scheduled maintenance and certified collision repair to parts distribution.