Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 3,864 Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG

Hsbc Holdings PLC cut its stake in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 56.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,038 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,864 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $596,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ABG. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 319.2% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 52.4% in the fourth quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 128 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 69.2% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 132 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of ABG opened at $231.40 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $206.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $209.49. The company has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $172.01 and a 1-year high of $263.38.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $6.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.31 by $0.51. The business had revenue of $4.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.49 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 12.74%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $7.43 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group set a $250.00 target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $212.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $242.00 price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $249.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Jed Milstein sold 948 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.28, for a total transaction of $237,265.44. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,817,902.52. This represents a 7.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director B. Christopher Disantis bought 157 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $182.31 per share, with a total value of $28,622.67. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,400 shares in the company, valued at $1,166,784. The trade was a 2.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc (NYSE:ABG) is one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States. Headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, the company operates a network of franchised dealerships representing a diverse portfolio of automotive brands. Its core business activities include the sale of new and pre-owned vehicles, as well as the provision of vehicle finance, insurance and protection products to retail customers.

In addition to retail sales, Asbury offers a comprehensive suite of after-sales services, from scheduled maintenance and certified collision repair to parts distribution.