Legal & General Group Plc Takes $8.41 Million Position in AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 45,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,413,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.14% of AutoNation at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in AutoNation during the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 37.4% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 235 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 49.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of AutoNation by 33.0% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 306 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Monetary Solutions Ltd bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the fourth quarter valued at about $64,000. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AutoNation Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of AutoNation stock opened at $204.11 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a market cap of $6.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.72. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $201.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $197.25. AutoNation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $176.62 and a fifty-two week high of $235.81.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $5.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.48 by $0.08. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.24% and a net margin of 2.82%.The firm had revenue of $6.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.26 earnings per share. AutoNation’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 21.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on AN. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of AutoNation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $240.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of AutoNation from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Argus upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $241.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $250.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 900 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $198,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,757,580. The trade was a 10.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoNation Profile

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.