Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Posted by Francis Steltz on Jul 9th, 2026

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH – Get Free Report)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after Bank of America raised their price target on the stock from $91.00 to $108.00. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the stock. Sonic Automotive traded as high as $90.73 and last traded at $91.0590, with a volume of 12981 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $88.01.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on SAH. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Barclays boosted their price target on Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley set a $72.00 target price on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.56.

Read Our Latest Analysis on Sonic Automotive

Insider Activity

In other news, President Jeff Dyke sold 35,114 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.22, for a total transaction of $2,992,415.08. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 543,668 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,331,386.96. This represents a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 100,000 shares of company stock worth $8,408,160 over the last quarter. 43.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 992.5% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 437 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the period. Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 4th quarter worth about $50,000. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 3rd quarter valued at about $78,000. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 1st quarter valued at about $79,000. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sonic Automotive Stock Up 4.0%

The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93. The company has a market cap of $2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $81.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.78.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 0.72% and a return on equity of 22.45%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.48 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This is a positive change from Sonic Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.23%.

About Sonic Automotive

(Get Free Report)

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a publicly traded automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised new-car dealerships and used-vehicle dealerships across the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company offers a range of services that include vehicle sales, leasing, finance and insurance products, service and parts, and collision repair. Sonic Automotive’s dealerships represent numerous major automotive brands, and the company also markets a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles under its own banner.

In addition to its core dealership operations, Sonic Automotive has developed digital retail capabilities that allow customers to research, shop and complete transactions online.

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