J. Goldman & Co LP Purchases New Position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG

J. Goldman & Co LP acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 23,483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,722,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 319.2% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 52.4% in the 4th quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 128 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 69.2% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 132 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ABG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $220.00 to $190.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $242.00 target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $246.71.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

NYSE ABG opened at $215.40 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $213.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $205.75. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $172.01 and a 52 week high of $263.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.06, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.71.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $6.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.31 by $0.51. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The business had revenue of $4.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Jed Milstein sold 948 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.28, for a total transaction of $237,265.44. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,817,902.52. The trade was a 7.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.