Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Posted by George Bondi on Oct 14th, 2026

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH – Get Free Report) was downgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

SAH has been the topic of several other research reports. Seaport Research Partners lowered Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $72.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 5th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $107.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Sonic Automotive from $90.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $90.12.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on SAH

Sonic Automotive Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE SAH opened at $61.02 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.92. Sonic Automotive has a 52-week low of $54.11 and a 52-week high of $113.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 1.01. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $72.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.14.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.37% and a return on equity of 20.75%. The company had revenue of $3.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.19 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive will post 6.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Sonic Automotive

In other Sonic Automotive news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak purchased 13,701 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $59.78 per share, for a total transaction of $819,045.78. Following the purchase, the insider owned 5,164,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $308,717,131.38. This trade represents a 0.27% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 64,221 shares of company stock valued at $3,832,650. Company insiders own 43.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SAH. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 1st quarter valued at about $79,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the second quarter valued at approximately $88,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 15.5% during the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the second quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 2,981.1% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 4,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 3,935 shares during the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Sonic Automotive, Inc is an automotive retailer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company operates franchised dealerships that sell new and used cars and light trucks from a range of manufacturers, along with related automotive products and services.

Its dealership operations provide vehicle financing and insurance products, parts and maintenance services, collision repair, and other after-sales support. Sonic Automotive also operates EchoPark Automotive, a used-vehicle retail business focused on providing a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles and related services.

Founded in 1997 by automotive entrepreneur O.