Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on CAR. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Monday, August 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Avis Budget Group from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Avis Budget Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Avis Budget Group from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price objective on Avis Budget Group from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $135.57.

Avis Budget Group Price Performance

NASDAQ CAR opened at $137.84 on Tuesday. Avis Budget Group has a 12 month low of $85.96 and a 12 month high of $847.70. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $150.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $170.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.87 billion, a P/E ratio of -7.59 and a beta of 1.91.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($1.07). The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Avis Budget Group will post 1.36 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Avis Budget Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CAR. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in Avis Budget Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,664,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Avis Budget Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,181,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 47,007.2% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 170,999 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $21,943,000 after acquiring an additional 170,636 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 5.0% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 356,900 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $52,036,000 after purchasing an additional 17,074 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 75.0% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 700,005 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $89,825,000 after purchasing an additional 300,000 shares during the period. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Avis Budget Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Avis Budget Group this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Investors who purchased Avis securities, including shares bought to cover a short position, between February 20, 2025, and April 21, 2026, have been notified of a September 29, 2026 deadline to seek appointment as lead plaintiff. Multiple firms are soliciting affected investors, but the notices do not indicate that a court has determined liability. Rosen investor deadline notice
• Negative Sentiment: The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Florida, alleges that Pentwater Capital Management LP and founder, CEO and CIO Matthew Halbower violated federal securities laws through alleged market-manipulation, pump-and-dump activity, and misleading statements related to an Avis short squeeze. The allegations remain unproven. Pomerantz class action announcement
• Negative Sentiment: According to the investor notices, Pentwater allegedly built a 51% economic interest in Avis before selling 4.3 million shares for approximately $1.75 billion, potentially leaving other shareholders with losses. The claims could create uncertainty around Avis’s investor relations, reputation and potential litigation exposure, although the reported action primarily targets Pentwater and Halbower. Shareholder alert on alleged Pentwater activity
• Negative Sentiment: The unusually large number of law-firm announcements over the past two days keeps the allegations in the market’s focus and may amplify volatility in CAR, which already has a high beta and recently traded below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.

Avis Budget Group Company Profile

Avis Budget Group, Inc operates as a leading global provider of vehicle rental and mobility solutions. Through its two core brands, Avis® and Budget®, the company offers a broad range of rental options including daily, weekly and monthly car rentals for leisure and business travelers. In addition to traditional airport and off-airport car rental services, Avis Budget Group delivers innovative mobility platforms such as car-sharing programs and connected fleet solutions designed to meet the evolving needs of corporate, government and individual customers.

The company’s roots trace back to Avis Rent a Car, founded in 1946, and Budget Rent a Car, established in 1958.