Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) Cut to Underperform at Bank of America

Bank of America lowered shares of Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) from a neutral rating to an underperform rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $19.00 price target on the information services provider’s stock.

ATHM has been the topic of several other research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Autohome in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Autohome from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Autohome from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, HSBC downgraded Autohome from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $17.30 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $17.77.

Autohome Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ATHM opened at $22.13 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.89 and a beta of 0.23. The company’s 50-day moving average is $20.77 and its 200 day moving average is $19.40. Autohome has a fifty-two week low of $15.57 and a fifty-two week high of $29.92.

Autohome Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a special dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 2nd. Autohome’s dividend payout ratio is 183.97%.

Insider Transactions at Autohome

In other news, CTO Bibo Xiang sold 10,508 shares of Autohome stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total value of $45,709.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 62,368 shares in the company, valued at $271,300.80. This trade represents a 14.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Yan Zeng sold 24,300 shares of Autohome stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total transaction of $105,705.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 169,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $739,239. The trade was a 12.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 5.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ATHM. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Autohome during the second quarter worth $29,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Autohome by 205.9% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,652 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,112 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Autohome by 30.5% during the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,886 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares in the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD boosted its stake in Autohome by 20.7% in the 4th quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 3,271 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares during the period. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in Autohome in the 3rd quarter worth about $106,000. 63.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Autohome Company Profile

Autohome Inc (NYSE: ATHM) operates one of China’s leading online destinations for automobile consumers, offering a comprehensive suite of digital platforms and services throughout the vehicle ownership lifecycle. Headquartered in Beijing, the company’s core website and mobile applications deliver news, reviews, pricing information, photos, videos and interactive tools to help prospective buyers evaluate new and used vehicles. By aggregating rich editorial content with user-generated ratings and expert analyses, Autohome seeks to guide consumers through research, purchase and after-sales decision-making.

In addition to its consumer-facing properties, Autohome provides automakers, dealers and service providers with integrated digital marketing and e-commerce solutions.