Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Major Shareholder Paul Rusnak Purchases 21,645 Shares of Stock

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) major shareholder Paul Rusnak bought 21,645 shares of Sonic Automotive stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $59.50 per share, with a total value of $1,287,877.50. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 5,121,645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,737,877.50. This represents a 0.42% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of SAH stock traded down $1.22 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $61.41. 146,558 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 286,585. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $76.95 and its 200 day moving average is $78.21. The company has a market capitalization of $1.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.80, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.92. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 1 year low of $54.11 and a 1 year high of $113.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.37% and a return on equity of 20.75%. The business had revenue of $3.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.19 EPS. Sonic Automotive’s revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.92 EPS for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is 26.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SAH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings cut Sonic Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Stephens set a $89.00 price target on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Monday, July 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners cut shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $95.50.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SAH. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,313,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,088,000 after buying an additional 48,599 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 70.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 181,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,208,000 after purchasing an additional 75,125 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Sonic Automotive by 64.4% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 131,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,003,000 after buying an additional 51,420 shares during the last quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the first quarter worth approximately $8,450,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in Sonic Automotive by 11.5% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 88,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,043,000 after acquiring an additional 9,100 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

About Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc is an automotive retailer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company operates franchised dealerships that sell new and used cars and light trucks from a range of manufacturers, along with related automotive products and services.

Its dealership operations provide vehicle financing and insurance products, parts and maintenance services, collision repair, and other after-sales support. Sonic Automotive also operates EchoPark Automotive, a used-vehicle retail business focused on providing a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles and related services.

Founded in 1997 by automotive entrepreneur O.