Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) Receives Consensus Rating of “Reduce” from Analysts

Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) has received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the five research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and three have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $17.15.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on ATHM shares. HSBC cut shares of Autohome from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $17.30 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Autohome from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Autohome from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th.

Autohome Stock Up 3.0%

Autohome stock opened at $20.54 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $18.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.55. The firm has a market cap of $2.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.68 and a beta of 0.23. Autohome has a 52 week low of $15.57 and a 52 week high of $29.92.

Autohome Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. Autohome’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 183.97%.

Insider Activity

In other Autohome news, CFO Yan Zeng sold 24,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total transaction of $105,705.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 169,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $739,239. This represents a 12.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CTO Bibo Xiang sold 10,508 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total value of $45,709.80. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 62,368 shares in the company, valued at $271,300.80. This represents a 14.42% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 5.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ATHM. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings in Autohome by 33.4% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 418,500 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $9,316,000 after acquiring an additional 104,800 shares in the last quarter. Kepler Cheuvreux Suisse SA purchased a new position in Autohome during the third quarter valued at $1,837,000. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in Autohome by 7.3% during the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,304,270 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $37,237,000 after purchasing an additional 89,057 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in Autohome during the first quarter valued at $1,014,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Autohome by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,682,506 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $59,713,000 after purchasing an additional 39,969 shares during the period. 63.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Autohome Company Profile

Autohome Inc (NYSE: ATHM) operates one of China’s leading online destinations for automobile consumers, offering a comprehensive suite of digital platforms and services throughout the vehicle ownership lifecycle. Headquartered in Beijing, the company’s core website and mobile applications deliver news, reviews, pricing information, photos, videos and interactive tools to help prospective buyers evaluate new and used vehicles. By aggregating rich editorial content with user-generated ratings and expert analyses, Autohome seeks to guide consumers through research, purchase and after-sales decision-making.

In addition to its consumer-facing properties, Autohome provides automakers, dealers and service providers with integrated digital marketing and e-commerce solutions.