UBS Group Begins Coverage on Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH)

Investment analysts at UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 6.77% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on SAH. Morgan Stanley set a $72.00 target price on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Sonic Automotive in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.00.

Sonic Automotive Trading Up 7.1%

SAH traded up $5.61 on Wednesday, reaching $84.30. 17,084 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 282,259. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93. Sonic Automotive has a one year low of $54.11 and a one year high of $89.62. The company has a market cap of $2.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.89.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 22.45% and a net margin of 0.72%.Sonic Automotive’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Sonic Automotive will post 6.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,646,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,278,000 after buying an additional 96,836 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 3.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,313,857 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,088,000 after purchasing an additional 48,599 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 701,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,623,000 after buying an additional 62,426 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 510,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,608,000 after buying an additional 54,455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 20.5% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 383,117 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,151,000 after acquiring an additional 65,266 shares during the period. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Company 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.