Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) Short Interest Update

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,170,000 shares, a drop of 6.5% from the December 15th total of 2,320,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 176,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 12.3 days. Approximately 11.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley raised Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $190.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Asbury Automotive Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $255.20.

Institutional Trading of Asbury Automotive Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Seven Eight Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Bridges Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter worth $760,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 3.8% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 25,823 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,884,000 after purchasing an additional 945 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 5.2% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 44,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,113,000 after purchasing an additional 2,205 shares during the period. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 8.3% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 1,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Asbury Automotive Group stock traded down $0.64 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $244.72. The stock had a trading volume of 291,690 shares, compared to its average volume of 133,305. Asbury Automotive Group has a 1-year low of $195.09 and a 1-year high of $277.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.85 and a beta of 1.19. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $251.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $240.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.58 by ($0.23). The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 2.16%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.12 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.