BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd Makes New Investment in Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM)

BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 7,000 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $228,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ATHM. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Autohome by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,333,350 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $61,180,000 after purchasing an additional 53,441 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its stake in Autohome by 88.9% in the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 1,700 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Autohome by 4.9% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 7,448 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $195,000 after buying an additional 348 shares during the period. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of Autohome during the first quarter valued at approximately $946,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Autohome by 36.3% in the second quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 72,652 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,994,000 after buying an additional 19,368 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.08% of the company’s stock.

Autohome Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:ATHM opened at $27.51 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $29.72 and its 200 day moving average is $27.56. The stock has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.69 and a beta of 0.18. Autohome Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.89 and a 52-week high of $34.70.

Autohome announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, September 4th that allows the company to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the information services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Autohome Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $1.15 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 5.8%. This is a boost from Autohome’s previous Variable dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Autohome’s dividend payout ratio is currently 83.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. CLSA cut Autohome from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Autohome from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Autohome to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.00.

About Autohome

Autohome Inc operates as an online destination for automobile consumers in the People’s Republic of China. The company delivers interactive content and tools to automobile consumers through its three websites, autohome.com.cn, che168.com, and ttpai.cn on PCs, mobile devices, mobile applications, and mini apps.