Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $97.3333.

Several research firms have weighed in on SAH. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Sonic Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $72.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Seaport Research Partners lowered shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $90.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Stephens set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Sonic Automotive from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sonic Automotive

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 9,481.6% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 1,318,145 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,766,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304,388 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,313,857 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,088,000 after buying an additional 48,599 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 701,133 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,623,000 after buying an additional 62,426 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 510,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,608,000 after buying an additional 54,455 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 20.5% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 383,117 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,151,000 after buying an additional 65,266 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

Shares of SAH stock opened at $76.33 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $86.84 and its 200-day moving average is $77.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a PE ratio of 12.17, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.86. Sonic Automotive has a 52 week low of $54.11 and a 52 week high of $113.67.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 20.75% and a net margin of 1.37%.The business had revenue of $3.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Sonic Automotive will post 6.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.16%.

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.