JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Stock Price

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) had its target price lowered by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $195.00 to $175.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target points to a potential upside of 7.36% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on AN. StockNews.com raised shares of AutoNation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Stephens raised their target price on AutoNation from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of AutoNation in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on AutoNation from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on AutoNation from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.86.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of AN stock traded down $7.71 during trading on Thursday, hitting $163.01. The company had a trading volume of 154,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 435,958. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.32. AutoNation has a one year low of $150.08 and a one year high of $198.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $180.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $173.72.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $4.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.26 by $0.71. AutoNation had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.59%. Equities analysts expect that AutoNation will post 18.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of AutoNation

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC boosted its position in AutoNation by 50.3% during the 4th quarter. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC now owns 1,461,213 shares of the company’s stock worth $248,172,000 after buying an additional 488,904 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its stake in shares of AutoNation by 422.7% during the fourth quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 575,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,658,000 after acquiring an additional 465,000 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 63.0% during the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,104,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,662,000 after purchasing an additional 426,882 shares during the period. Cartenna Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the fourth quarter worth $56,831,000. Finally, Simcoe Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in AutoNation in the third quarter valued at $42,255,000. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.