GSA Capital Partners LLP Boosts Stock Position in Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

GSA Capital Partners LLP grew its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) by 172.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,717 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,317 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP’s holdings in Sonic Automotive were worth $1,120,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the third quarter worth approximately $109,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the second quarter worth approximately $168,000. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $208,000. Finally, Creative Planning acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 2nd quarter valued at $213,000. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SAH has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $70.00 to $67.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley set a $68.00 target price on Sonic Automotive in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Zacks Research raised Sonic Automotive from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Sonic Automotive from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $82.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.75.

Sonic Automotive News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Sonic Automotive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Large insider accumulation — Paul P. Rusnak bought multiple blocks of shares in February (totaling tens of thousands across filings), increasing his stake to ~5.1M shares; repeated buys from a major holder tend to support sentiment. SEC Filing: Insider Purchases
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend declared — Sonic announced a quarterly dividend of $0.38/share (ex-dividend March 13; payable April 15), implying a ~2.4% yield and a ~41% payout ratio that can attract income-oriented buyers.
• Positive Sentiment: Record gross profit flagged on the call — Management highlighted record gross profit in Q4, supporting a margin-recovery narrative despite top-line pressure. Investing.com: Record Gross Profit
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings materials available — Slides and the full earnings call transcript are posted for deeper analysis of F&I, used-vehicle trends and inventory; analysts will parse these for guidance and margin drivers. Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst mix — Needham reaffirmed a Buy and a $90 target (large upside vs. current levels), showing bullish conviction from some desks. Benzinga: Needham Reaffirmation
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 slight miss — Sonic reported $1.52 EPS (missed consensus by $0.01) and revenues of $3.87B (below estimates ~ $3.94B), with revenue down ~0.6% YoY and low net margins (~0.9%); this gives short-term bearish talking points on demand. Zacks: Q4 Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Price-target trim by Stephens — Stephens cut its target to $67 and set an Equal Weight rating, which is a near-term headwind for sentiment versus higher targets. The Fly: Stephens Cut

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonic Automotive

In other news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak purchased 11,481 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $59.95 per share, for a total transaction of $688,285.95. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 5,100,000 shares in the company, valued at $305,745,000. The trade was a 0.23% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have bought a total of 100,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,994,472 over the last quarter. 42.65% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

NYSE SAH opened at $64.56 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.04 and a beta of 0.93. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 52-week low of $52.00 and a 52-week high of $89.62. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $62.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.01). Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 0.78% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The company had revenue of $3.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.51 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is currently 41.08%.

Sonic Automotive Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a publicly traded automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised new-car dealerships and used-vehicle dealerships across the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company offers a range of services that include vehicle sales, leasing, finance and insurance products, service and parts, and collision repair. Sonic Automotive’s dealerships represent numerous major automotive brands, and the company also markets a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles under its own banner.

In addition to its core dealership operations, Sonic Automotive has developed digital retail capabilities that allow customers to research, shop and complete transactions online.