Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) Upgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold” Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Barclays reduced their target price on Avis Budget Group from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price target on Avis Budget Group in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Avis Budget Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the company from $112.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Avis Budget Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Avis Budget Group has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $123.75.

Avis Budget Group Price Performance

NASDAQ CAR opened at $154.06 on Wednesday. Avis Budget Group has a 12 month low of $85.96 and a 12 month high of $847.70. The company has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.09 and a beta of 1.91. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $201.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $154.59.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported ($8.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($6.82) by ($1.19). The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.43 billion. The business’s revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($14.35) earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Avis Budget Group will post 3.72 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Avis Budget Group

In other news, major shareholder Pentwater Capital Management L sold 3,347 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $438.74, for a total transaction of $1,468,462.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 6,177,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,710,140,854. This represents a 0.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Edward P. Linnen sold 9,483 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.32, for a total value of $1,728,940.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 37,932 shares in the company, valued at $6,915,762.24. The trade was a 20.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 18,249 shares of company stock worth $4,014,515 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 50.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in shares of Avis Budget Group by 37.3% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,964,807 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $380,444,000 after acquiring an additional 804,814 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Avis Budget Group by 40.3% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 539,395 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $69,215,000 after acquiring an additional 154,994 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its position in Avis Budget Group by 1,443.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 15,955 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,562,000 after purchasing an additional 14,921 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in Avis Budget Group by 287.5% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 11,192 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,436,000 after purchasing an additional 8,304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Avis Budget Group by 203.8% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 37,467 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,016,000 after purchasing an additional 25,135 shares during the period. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.