Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) Stock Now Rated “Hold” by Sell-Side Analysts

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the ten research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $222.88.

ABG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Citigroup increased their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $212.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Seaport Research Partners upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $232.00 price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $193.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cim Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 7.3% during the second quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $235,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC boosted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 9.0% during the first quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 1,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 20.2% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 642 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 263.3% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 178 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 42.4% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Up 3.8%

ABG stock opened at $210.26 on Tuesday. Asbury Automotive Group has a 52 week low of $160.30 and a 52 week high of $258.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $188.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $203.16. The company has a market capitalization of $3.77 billion, a PE ratio of 8.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.78.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $6.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.42 by ($0.26). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 2.66%. The business had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $7.17 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Asbury Automotive Group will post 24.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group is a U.S. automotive retailer that operates franchised new- and used-vehicle dealerships. Its dealerships sell vehicles from a range of manufacturers and offer related services, including vehicle financing and insurance products, maintenance and repairs, parts sales, and collision repair.

The company also operates Clicklane, a digital platform that lets customers research, purchase, finance, and arrange delivery of vehicles online. Asbury was founded in 1995 and has expanded through acquisitions, including its 2021 purchase of Larry H.