7,383 Shares in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Purchased by Mach 1 Financial Group LLC

Mach 1 Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 7,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $415,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 2,718.9% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 29,880 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,427,000 after acquiring an additional 28,820 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at $218,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at $1,770,000. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 3rd quarter worth $328,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 4.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 381,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,207,000 after buying an additional 16,117 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of SAH stock traded down $0.57 on Wednesday, hitting $57.27. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 24,381 shares, compared to its average volume of 226,974. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.86 and a beta of 1.82. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.02 and a fifty-two week high of $64.68. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $52.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $52.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.06. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 27.46% and a net margin of 1.21%. The firm had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 5.64 EPS for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is 24.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TheStreet raised shares of Sonic Automotive from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Bank of America upgraded Sonic Automotive from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $55.00 to $68.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Sonic Automotive from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.00.

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.