Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) Receives Average Recommendation of “Strong Sell” from Brokerages

Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) has been assigned an average rating of “Strong Sell” from the ten analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and four have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $125.00.

CAR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Avis Budget Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $112.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research downgraded Avis Budget Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Barclays downgraded Avis Budget Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $95.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Monday, April 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Avis Budget Group from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Avis Budget Group from $142.00 to $97.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 6th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Avis Budget Group news, major shareholder Pentwater Capital Management L sold 3,347 shares of Avis Budget Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $438.74, for a total transaction of $1,468,462.78. Following the sale, the insider owned 6,177,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,710,140,854. The trade was a 0.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Lynn Krominga sold 1,950 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.54, for a total value of $178,503.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 18,249 shares of company stock worth $4,014,515 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 50.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Avis Budget Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CAR. ING Groep NV raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 440.2% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,035,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $166,195,000 after buying an additional 843,400 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 37.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,964,807 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $380,444,000 after buying an additional 804,814 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group in the 3rd quarter worth $97,951,000. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 38.1% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,975,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $253,519,000 after buying an additional 545,574 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 46.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,290,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $207,142,000 after buying an additional 409,761 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.35% of the company’s stock.

Avis Budget Group Price Performance

Shares of Avis Budget Group stock opened at $168.29 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $197.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $154.41. The company has a market capitalization of $5.94 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.83 and a beta of 1.92. Avis Budget Group has a 1-year low of $85.96 and a 1-year high of $847.70.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported ($8.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($6.82) by ($1.19). The business had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.43 billion. Avis Budget Group’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($14.35) earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Avis Budget Group will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Avis Budget Group

Avis Budget Group, Inc operates as a leading global provider of vehicle rental and mobility solutions. Through its two core brands, Avis® and Budget®, the company offers a broad range of rental options including daily, weekly and monthly car rentals for leisure and business travelers. In addition to traditional airport and off-airport car rental services, Avis Budget Group delivers innovative mobility platforms such as car-sharing programs and connected fleet solutions designed to meet the evolving needs of corporate, government and individual customers.

The company’s roots trace back to Avis Rent a Car, founded in 1946, and Budget Rent a Car, established in 1958.