Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Declares $0.38 Quarterly Dividend

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.38 per share on Thursday, January 15th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th.

Sonic Automotive has a dividend payout ratio of 20.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Sonic Automotive to earn $7.51 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 18.6%.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

SAH stock opened at $65.50 on Friday. Sonic Automotive has a 52-week low of $52.00 and a 52-week high of $89.62. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $78.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.56 and a beta of 0.95.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.82 by ($0.41). Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 21.40% and a net margin of 1.07%.The business had revenue of $3.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.26 EPS. Sonic Automotive’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Sonic Automotive will post 6.14 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Stephens cut Sonic Automotive from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $72.00 to $82.00 in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Zacks Research lowered Sonic Automotive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Sonic Automotive from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.00.

About Sonic Automotive

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.