AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Price Target Raised to $224.00

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) had its price target increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $202.00 to $224.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

AN has been the topic of several other research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded AutoNation from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays lifted their target price on AutoNation from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Northcoast Research raised AutoNation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $240.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. UBS Group began coverage on AutoNation in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $234.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on AutoNation from $269.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AutoNation currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $247.45.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AN opened at $215.68 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $7.13 billion, a PE ratio of 9.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $197.04 and a 200-day moving average of $198.44. AutoNation has a one year low of $176.62 and a one year high of $235.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.20.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $5.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.48 by $0.08. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 31.24%. The company had revenue of $6.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.26 EPS. AutoNation’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AutoNation will post 21.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoNation

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AN. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in AutoNation by 192,434.0% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,424,431 shares of the company’s stock valued at $913,557,000 after purchasing an additional 4,422,133 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the fourth quarter worth $69,319,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 260.2% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 333,975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,064,000 after acquiring an additional 241,265 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 51.8% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 631,744 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,439,000 after acquiring an additional 215,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in AutoNation by 444.2% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 119,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,605,000 after acquiring an additional 97,268 shares during the period. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.