AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Shares Purchased by Ellsworth Advisors LLC

Ellsworth Advisors LLC raised its position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 6.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,410 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the period. Ellsworth Advisors LLC’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $662,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 1st quarter worth about $65,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 3rd quarter worth about $67,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of AutoNation by 101.6% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.26, for a total value of $16,126,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,167,270 shares in the company, valued at $672,013,960.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CAO Kimberly Dees sold 3,133 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total transaction of $477,093.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 464 shares in the company, valued at $70,657.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.26, for a total value of $16,126,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,167,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $672,013,960.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 579,060 shares of company stock worth $84,837,845 over the last 90 days. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on AutoNation from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. StockNews.com downgraded AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $178.00.

AutoNation Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of AutoNation stock traded down $1.76 on Thursday, reaching $165.70. 290,032 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 436,063. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.81 and a 1-year high of $182.08. The company has a market cap of $6.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $148.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.58.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $5.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.85 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $6.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.67 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 48.76% and a net margin of 3.79%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 19.05 EPS for the current year.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.