Sequent Asset Management LLC Sells 118 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Sequent Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,859 shares of the company’s stock after selling 118 shares during the quarter. Sequent Asset Management LLC’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in AutoNation during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its holdings in AutoNation by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in AutoNation by 22.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,069 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation during the fourth quarter worth approximately $172,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AN traded down $4.30 on Tuesday, hitting $161.13. The stock had a trading volume of 602,442 shares, compared to its average volume of 464,639. The company has a market capitalization of $6.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $154.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $145.12. AutoNation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.81 and a twelve month high of $182.08.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.49 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 43.48% and a net margin of 3.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.05 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.92 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoNation announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Friday, April 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 14.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 3,671 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.67, for a total transaction of $549,438.57. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,182 shares in the company, valued at $925,259.94. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other AutoNation news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 3,671 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.67, for a total transaction of $549,438.57. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $925,259.94. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total value of $1,669,866.24. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,267,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $659,640,441.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 121,279 shares of company stock valued at $19,361,962 over the last three months. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley raised shares of AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com lowered shares of AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on AutoNation from $153.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AutoNation presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.38.

About AutoNation

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.