Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG is Abrams Capital Management L.P.’s 3rd Largest Position

Abrams Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,155,492 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 46,952 shares during the quarter. Asbury Automotive Group accounts for about 8.5% of Abrams Capital Management L.P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Abrams Capital Management L.P. owned approximately 11.09% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $526,910,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 69.2% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 64.8% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 104.2% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 337 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 466.7% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 442 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 17.8% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on ABG. Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 target price on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Monday, December 8th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “reduce” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $247.57.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Up 1.2%

NYSE:ABG opened at $230.11 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $4.47 billion, a PE ratio of 9.17 and a beta of 0.82. The business’s 50 day moving average is $238.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $239.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $201.68 and a 52 week high of $298.43.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $6.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.70 by ($0.03). Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 14.63%. The firm had revenue of $4.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $7.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 EPS for the current year.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc (NYSE:ABG) is one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States. Headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, the company operates a network of franchised dealerships representing a diverse portfolio of automotive brands. Its core business activities include the sale of new and pre-owned vehicles, as well as the provision of vehicle finance, insurance and protection products to retail customers.

In addition to retail sales, Asbury offers a comprehensive suite of after-sales services, from scheduled maintenance and certified collision repair to parts distribution.