Tudor Investment Corp ET AL Reduces Position in AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lessened its holdings in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 51.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,139 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,448 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $1,343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in AutoNation by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,176,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $694,950,000 after acquiring an additional 34,153 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in AutoNation by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 907,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $198,460,000 after acquiring an additional 91,232 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in AutoNation by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 697,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $151,967,000 after acquiring an additional 66,183 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP grew its stake in AutoNation by 38.3% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 548,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,034,000 after acquiring an additional 151,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in AutoNation by 260.2% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 333,975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,064,000 after purchasing an additional 241,265 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AN stock opened at $202.26 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $196.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $205.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.84. AutoNation, Inc. has a one year low of $155.29 and a one year high of $228.92. The firm has a market cap of $6.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.86 and a beta of 0.81.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 6th. The company reported $5.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.91 by $0.17. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.35% and a return on equity of 31.69%. The firm had revenue of $6.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.97 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AN shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $230.00 to $207.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $280.00 to $269.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of AutoNation from $228.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of AutoNation from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $244.33.

AutoNation 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.