Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms also recently commented on SAH. Citigroup upped their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Stephens downgraded Sonic Automotive from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $72.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Benchmark upped their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $83.00.

Sonic Automotive Stock Down 1.4%

SAH opened at $64.55 on Wednesday. Sonic Automotive has a twelve month low of $52.00 and a twelve month high of $89.62. 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $77.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.14. The stock has a market cap of $2.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.45 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 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.82 by ($0.41). Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 0.86% and a return on equity of 21.69%. The firm had revenue of $3.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.26 EPS. Sonic Automotive’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Sonic Automotive will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 992.5% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 437 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $109,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $84,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $168,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $208,000. Institutional investors own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

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.