Citigroup Cuts AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Price Target to $269.00

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) had its price target cut by Citigroup from $280.00 to $269.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 36.57% from the stock’s previous close.

AN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised AutoNation from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $235.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings cut AutoNation from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Bank of America started coverage on AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Stephens upped their target price on AutoNation from $228.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on AutoNation from $222.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $246.89.

AutoNation Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE AN traded up $3.46 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $196.97. The stock had a trading volume of 312,410 shares, compared to its average volume of 441,355. The company has a market capitalization of $6.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.57 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $197.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $205.56. AutoNation has a 52 week low of $154.73 and a 52 week high of $228.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.84.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported $5.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.91 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $6.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.21 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.69% and a net margin of 2.35%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.97 EPS. Analysts anticipate that AutoNation will post 18.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. HM Payson & Co. acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 355.3% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 173 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 37.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 235 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.