JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Price Target to $75.00

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) had its price target raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $63.00 to $75.00 in a research note released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on SAH. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Needham & Company LLC initiated coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. They set a buy rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sonic Automotive currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $63.50.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SAH opened at $54.37 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of 11.14 and a beta of 1.61. Sonic Automotive has a fifty-two week low of $41.19 and a fifty-two week high of $64.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 1.10.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.09. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 25.31%. The company had revenue of $3.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.83 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.21%. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is 24.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Heath Byrd sold 19,827 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $1,189,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 173,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,417,080. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 40.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sonic Automotive

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Sonic Automotive in the second quarter worth $41,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the second quarter valued at $82,000. TFO Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 35,366.7% during the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,128 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,000 after purchasing an additional 2,122 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd grew its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 2,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.