Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) Shares Acquired by Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC

Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) by 209.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 9,336 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,316 shares during the period. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Avis Budget Group were worth $753,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CAR. ING Groep NV grew its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 310.4% during the 4th quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 325,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,198,000 after purchasing an additional 245,800 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 266.7% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 330,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,601,000 after purchasing an additional 240,000 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 1,391.0% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 253,200 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $20,410,000 after purchasing an additional 236,218 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 139.9% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 379,805 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,616,000 after purchasing an additional 221,456 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Avis Budget Group during the 4th quarter valued at $12,164,000. 96.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Lynn Krominga sold 1,405 shares of Avis Budget Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $133,475.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,950 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $185,250. The trade was a 41.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 52.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Avis Budget Group Price Performance

Shares of CAR stock opened at $105.84 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.72 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.04 and a beta of 2.10. Avis Budget Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.03 and a 1-year high of $130.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $77.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.17.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The business services provider reported ($14.35) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($5.72) by ($8.63). The company had revenue of $2.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. Avis Budget Group had a negative return on equity of 14.74% and a negative net margin of 15.45%. Avis Budget Group’s revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($3.21) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Avis Budget Group, Inc. will post 8.91 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Avis Budget Group from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Avis Budget Group from $100.00 to $87.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Avis Budget Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.00.

About Avis Budget Group

Avis Budget Group, Inc engages in the provision of vehicle sharing and rental services. It operates through the following segments: Americas, International, and Corporate and Other. The Americas segment includes the vehicle rental and car sharing operations in North America, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean.