Pecaut & CO. Makes New $4.38 Million Investment in AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Pecaut & CO. purchased a new position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 23,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,379,000. AutoNation makes up 1.3% of Pecaut & CO.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Pecaut & CO. owned 0.07% of AutoNation as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $482,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its position in AutoNation by 8.2% during the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 186,969 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,737,000 after acquiring an additional 14,115 shares in the last quarter. Community Financial Services Group LLC acquired a new stake in AutoNation in the second quarter valued at approximately $108,000. Redwood Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in AutoNation by 1.1% in the first quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC now owns 5,372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,049,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DV Trading LLC bought a new stake in AutoNation in the first quarter worth approximately $247,000. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at AutoNation

In other AutoNation news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $198,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 7,989 shares in the company, valued at $1,757,580. This represents a 10.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of AutoNation stock opened at $209.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $199.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $198.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.69, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.71. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $176.62 and a 1-year high of $235.81.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $5.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.48 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 31.24%. AutoNation’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.26 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 21.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and set a $255.00 price target on shares of AutoNation in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Northcoast Research raised shares of AutoNation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $240.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on AutoNation from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $250.00.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.