Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Stock Price Down 4.8% – What’s Next?

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)’s share price fell 4.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $187.48 and last traded at $185.8010. Approximately 131,939 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 46% from the average session volume of 242,536 shares. The stock had previously closed at $195.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ABG shares. UBS Group set a $250.00 target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $242.00 price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Citigroup raised their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $212.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Seaport Research Partners upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Asbury Automotive Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $237.83.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $214.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $203.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $3.28 billion, a PE ratio of 6.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.71.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $6.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.31 by $0.51. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The business had revenue of $4.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.49 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $7.43 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, SVP Jed Milstein sold 948 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.28, for a total transaction of $237,265.44. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,259 shares in the company, valued at $2,817,902.52. This trade represents a 7.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Asbury Automotive Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABG. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 1,067.2% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 14,217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,859,000 after purchasing an additional 12,999 shares in the last quarter. GoodHaven Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 29.0% in the 2nd quarter. GoodHaven Capital Management LLC now owns 56,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,351,000 after acquiring an additional 12,689 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 263.3% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the second quarter worth $243,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 5.7% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 4,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $867,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the period.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc is a U.S.-based automotive retailer that sells new and used vehicles through a network of franchised dealerships. The company represents a range of domestic, import and luxury automotive brands and serves consumers in multiple markets across the United States.

In addition to vehicle sales, Asbury provides automotive maintenance and repair services, replacement parts, collision repair and other dealership-related services. Its dealerships also offer financing and insurance products, vehicle protection plans and digital tools designed to support vehicle purchasing and ownership.

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, Asbury has expanded through acquisitions as well as the development of its dealership portfolio.