JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Stock Price

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) had its target price lifted by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 2.90% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded AutoNation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AutoNation currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.71.

AutoNation Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of AutoNation stock traded down $3.85 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $189.51. 65,925 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 452,031. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.51 billion, a PE ratio of 11.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $180.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $173.51. AutoNation has a 1-year low of $136.35 and a 1-year high of $198.50.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $4.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.26 by $0.71. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.59% and a return on equity of 30.98%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that AutoNation will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoNation

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AN. Boston Partners grew its holdings in AutoNation by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,814,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,312,000 after purchasing an additional 203,335 shares during the period. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 50.3% during the fourth quarter. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC now owns 1,461,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $248,172,000 after acquiring an additional 488,904 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its stake in AutoNation by 63.0% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,104,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,662,000 after purchasing an additional 426,882 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in AutoNation by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 854,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $152,804,000 after purchasing an additional 19,037 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 851,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $144,682,000 after buying an additional 160,794 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

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.