Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Sees Large Volume Increase – Time to Buy?

Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) saw strong trading volume on Monday . 169,921 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 6% from the previous session’s volume of 180,597 shares.The stock last traded at $221.98 and had previously closed at $222.87.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ABG shares. Bank of America reduced their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $251.20.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $229.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $231.27. The stock has a market cap of $4.58 billion, a PE ratio of 8.25 and a beta of 1.16.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The company reported $6.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.31 by ($0.91). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 17.93% and a net margin of 2.51%. The business had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $8.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Asbury Automotive Group

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total transaction of $113,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares in the company, valued at $12,911,548.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Asbury Automotive Group news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total value of $113,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 56,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,911,548.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.63, for a total transaction of $1,884,687.39. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,008,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $453,211,473.87. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 292 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $155,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $190,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $194,000.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.