Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) Trading 7.1% Higher – Should You Buy?

Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) shot up 7.1% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $174.00 and last traded at $176.85. 45,944 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 98% from the average session volume of 1,974,071 shares. The stock had previously closed at $165.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CAR. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Avis Budget Group from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Avis Budget Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $112.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Friday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price target on Avis Budget Group in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Avis Budget Group from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Avis Budget Group currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $125.25.

Avis Budget Group Stock Up 0.5%

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $220.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -9.23 and a beta of 1.91.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported ($8.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($6.82) by ($1.19). The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($14.35) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Avis Budget Group, Inc. will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Avis Budget Group

In related news, major shareholder Pentwater Capital Management L sold 3,347 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $438.74, for a total transaction of $1,468,462.78. Following the sale, the insider owned 6,177,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,710,140,854. This trade represents a 0.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Edward P. Linnen sold 9,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.32, for a total value of $1,728,940.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,932 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,915,762.24. The trade was a 20.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 16,299 shares of company stock valued at $3,836,012 over the last quarter. 50.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Avis Budget Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Avis Budget Group by 37.3% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,964,807 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $380,444,000 after acquiring an additional 804,814 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Avis Budget Group by 38.1% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,975,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $253,519,000 after acquiring an additional 545,574 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in Avis Budget Group by 46.6% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,290,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $207,142,000 after acquiring an additional 409,761 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV boosted its stake in Avis Budget Group by 440.2% in the third quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,035,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $166,195,000 after acquiring an additional 843,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in Avis Budget Group by 1.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 713,127 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $120,554,000 after acquiring an additional 7,318 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.35% of the company’s stock.

About Avis Budget Group

Avis Budget Group, Inc operates as a leading global provider of vehicle rental and mobility solutions. Through its two core brands, Avis® and Budget®, the company offers a broad range of rental options including daily, weekly and monthly car rentals for leisure and business travelers. In addition to traditional airport and off-airport car rental services, Avis Budget Group delivers innovative mobility platforms such as car-sharing programs and connected fleet solutions designed to meet the evolving needs of corporate, government and individual customers.

The company’s roots trace back to Avis Rent a Car, founded in 1946, and Budget Rent a Car, established in 1958.