7,418 AutoNation, Inc. $AN Shares Purchased by Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.

Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 175,371 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,418 shares during the quarter. AutoNation comprises about 3.0% of Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. owned about 0.53% of AutoNation worth $27,610,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in AutoNation in the second quarter worth about $438,689,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,478,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $288,784,000 after purchasing an additional 56,641 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 8.7% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 383,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,905,000 after purchasing an additional 30,725 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,925,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 186,969 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,737,000 after buying an additional 14,115 shares during the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about AutoNation

Here are the key news stories impacting AutoNation this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AutoNation reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $5.11 per share, above the $5.08 consensus estimate, while revenue of $7.01 billion exceeded expectations of $6.93 billion. Earnings also improved from $5.01 per share a year earlier. AutoNation third-quarter earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Record After-Sales gross profit and sharply higher AutoNation Finance income—$15.4 million versus $1.5 million a year earlier—helped support results despite a challenging vehicle market. AutoNation service resilience article
• Positive Sentiment: The company repurchased approximately $620 million of stock during the first nine months and received an additional $1 billion authorization. Management’s view that AN shares are undervalued could provide continued support for the stock and boost per-share results. Why AutoNation stock popped after earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue was essentially flat year over year at roughly $7.0 billion. Liquidity stood at $1.5 billion, including $51 million in cash, while the company maintained strong reported returns, including a 31.24% return on equity.
• Negative Sentiment: GAAP net income fell 25% to $162.3 million, operating income declined 16%, and GAAP diluted EPS decreased to $4.87 from $5.65. Gross profit also slipped 2% year over year. AutoNation third-quarter revenue and net income report
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Executive Officer Mike Manley warned that economic pressure is causing consumers to delay vehicle repairs, creating a risk for future After-Sales demand even though that division was resilient this quarter. AutoNation CEO warns about delayed car repairs

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AN. Morgan Stanley cut AutoNation from an “overweight” rating to a “negative” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Seaport Research Partners reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $255.00 target price on shares of AutoNation in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded AutoNation from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. Stephens raised their price target on AutoNation from $220.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised AutoNation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $240.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $230.00.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AN opened at $179.05 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $176.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $193.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. AutoNation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $151.82 and a 12 month high of $235.81. The company has a market cap of $5.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.81.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $5.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.08 by $0.03. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.24% and a net margin of 2.82%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.01 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 21.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In related news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $198,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,757,580. This trade represents a 10.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About AutoNation

AutoNation, Inc is a U.S.-based automotive retailer that sells new and used vehicles through a network of dealerships and online sales channels. The company represents a range of domestic, import and luxury automotive brands, offering passenger cars, trucks and sport utility vehicles.

In addition to vehicle sales, AutoNation provides automotive maintenance and repair, parts, collision-repair services, vehicle protection products and financing options. Its retail operations include traditional dealerships as well as AutoNation USA locations, which focus primarily on used vehicles and related services.

Founded in 1996 as Republic Industries, the company adopted the AutoNation name as it developed its automotive retail business.