Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) shares gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $51.12, but opened at $55.43. Sonic Automotive shares last traded at $56.27, with a volume of 99,659 shares trading hands.

The company reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.45 billion. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.21% and a return on equity of 27.69%. The firm’s revenue was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.92%. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $55.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday. TheStreet upgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sonic Automotive has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.00.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the third quarter worth approximately $135,000. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive in the third quarter worth $1,328,000. Olympiad Research LP acquired a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 3rd quarter valued at $214,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund acquired a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 3rd quarter valued at $443,000. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 140.4% in the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 17,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $855,000 after buying an additional 10,450 shares during the period. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Trading Up 10.0 %

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $52.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $52.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.10. The firm has a market cap of $2.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.78 and a beta of 1.82.

About Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.