Quantbot Technologies LP Boosts Holdings in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG

Quantbot Technologies LP increased its position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 196.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,085 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,033 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $1,487,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Magnolia Group LLC increased its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 18.7% during the third quarter. Magnolia Group LLC now owns 282,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,087,000 after acquiring an additional 44,500 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 631.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 7,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,720,000 after purchasing an additional 6,074 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 14.4% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 76,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,739,000 after purchasing an additional 9,632 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 545.7% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 143,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,051,000 after purchasing an additional 121,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Abrams Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Abrams Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,155,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $526,910,000 after buying an additional 46,952 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ABG shares. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “reduce” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered Asbury Automotive Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $247.57.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ABG opened at $207.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $233.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $237.92. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $201.68 and a 52-week high of $274.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.28 and a beta of 0.81.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $6.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.70 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $4.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.93 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 14.51% and a net margin of 2.73%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.26 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Asbury Automotive Group 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.