Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Receives $77.50 Average Price Target from Analysts

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $77.50.

SAH has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Barclays set a $67.00 price objective on Sonic Automotive in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Stephens reduced their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Sonic Automotive in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SAH opened at $70.85 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $63.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $64.48. The company has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. Sonic Automotive has a twelve month low of $54.11 and a twelve month high of $89.62.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.94 billion. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 21.54% and a net margin of 0.78%.Sonic Automotive’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.51 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Sonic Automotive will post 6.14 EPS for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is currently 44.84%.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak acquired 11,481 shares of Sonic Automotive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $59.95 per share, for a total transaction of $688,285.95. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 5,100,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $305,745,000. The trade was a 0.23% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders purchased a total of 100,000 shares of company stock worth $5,994,472 in the last three months. Insiders own 43.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sonic Automotive

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SAH. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive in the third quarter valued at approximately $647,000. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 311.2% in the third quarter. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC now owns 23,571 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,794,000 after buying an additional 17,839 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,646,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,278,000 after buying an additional 96,836 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 39.5% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 68,842 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,238,000 after buying an additional 19,483 shares during the period. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,006,000. Institutional investors own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a publicly traded automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised new-car dealerships and used-vehicle dealerships across the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company offers a range of services that include vehicle sales, leasing, finance and insurance products, service and parts, and collision repair. Sonic Automotive’s dealerships represent numerous major automotive brands, and the company also markets a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles under its own banner.

In addition to its core dealership operations, Sonic Automotive has developed digital retail capabilities that allow customers to research, shop and complete transactions online.