Seaport Res Ptn Has Bearish Estimate for SAH FY2024 Earnings

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) – Seaport Res Ptn dropped their FY2024 earnings estimates for shares of Sonic Automotive in a report released on Thursday, November 21st. Seaport Res Ptn analyst G. Chin now expects that the company will post earnings per share of $5.50 for the year, down from their prior estimate of $5.70. Seaport Res Ptn has a “Strong-Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Sonic Automotive’s current full-year earnings is $5.60 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Sonic Automotive’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.41 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $6.15 EPS.

SAH has been the topic of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $40.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Stephens started coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $64.00 price target on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.40.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

NYSE SAH opened at $69.42 on Monday. Sonic Automotive has a 1-year low of $47.82 and a 1-year high of $70.88. The company has a 50 day moving average of $59.00 and a 200-day moving average of $57.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The firm has a market cap of $2.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.35 and a beta of 1.61.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by ($0.17). Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 21.27% and a net margin of 1.41%. The firm had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.02 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Point72 DIFC Ltd lifted its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6.9% in the second quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 2,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $158,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its stake in Sonic Automotive by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,475 shares of the company’s stock worth $353,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 10.8% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 4,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,000 after buying an additional 420 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 12,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $730,000 after acquiring an additional 458 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Sonic Automotive by 4.6% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 11,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $667,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. This is an increase from Sonic Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.91%.

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.