Seaport Res Ptn Expects Weaker Earnings for Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) – Analysts at Seaport Res Ptn decreased their FY2025 earnings estimates for shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note issued to investors on Monday, November 10th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst G. Chin now forecasts that the company will post earnings of $6.65 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $7.37. The consensus estimate for Sonic Automotive’s current full-year earnings is $6.14 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Sonic Automotive’s Q4 2025 earnings at $1.57 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $7.05 EPS.

Several other research firms also recently commented on SAH. Needham & Company LLC reduced their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Stephens downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $72.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Sonic Automotive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup raised Sonic Automotive from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $82.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.75.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

SAH stock opened at $61.92 on Wednesday. Sonic Automotive has a twelve month low of $52.00 and a twelve month high of $89.62. The firm has a market cap of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.74 and a beta of 0.91. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $73.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.82 by ($0.41). Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 0.86% and a return on equity of 21.65%. The business had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.26 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is 41.08%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sonic Automotive

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 172.5% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 14,717 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,120,000 after purchasing an additional 9,317 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Sonic Automotive by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,646,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,278,000 after buying an additional 96,836 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in Sonic Automotive by 39.5% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 68,842 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,238,000 after buying an additional 19,483 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 7.1% in the third quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 7,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $584,000 after acquiring an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 1.7% in the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 46,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,576,000 after acquiring an additional 772 shares in the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.