JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Stock Price

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) had its price objective reduced by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $76.00 to $72.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “underweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target would indicate a potential downside of 17.76% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Seaport Research Partners cut shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Stephens set a $89.00 price objective on Sonic Automotive in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings raised Sonic Automotive from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on Sonic Automotive from $90.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $77.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $97.89.

Sonic Automotive Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE:SAH traded up $0.32 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $87.55. 122,672 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 280,786. Sonic Automotive has a 1 year low of $54.11 and a 1 year high of $113.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $88.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.89.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.37% and a return on equity of 20.75%. The business had revenue of $3.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Sonic Automotive will post 6.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Sonic Automotive

In other Sonic Automotive news, President Jeff Dyke sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.97, for a total transaction of $4,148,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president owned 111,622 shares in the company, valued at $9,261,277.34. This trade represents a 30.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 100,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,408,160 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 43.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sonic Automotive

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 70.8% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 181,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,208,000 after buying an additional 75,125 shares in the last quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 1st quarter worth about $8,450,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,313,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,088,000 after buying an additional 48,599 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Sonic Automotive by 64.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 131,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,003,000 after buying an additional 51,420 shares during the period. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive during the first quarter valued at approximately $453,000. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sonic Automotive

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.