Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Purchases Shares of 34,804 Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 34,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,951,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SAH. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 992.5% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive during the third quarter worth approximately $78,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $79,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the 2nd quarter valued at $168,000. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth $208,000. Institutional investors own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

Shares of SAH opened at $80.72 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $87.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $77.19. The stock has a market cap of $2.55 billion, a PE ratio of 12.87, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.86. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.11 and a 12-month high of $113.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 20.75% and a net margin of 1.37%.The business’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.19 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sonic Automotive news, President Jeff Dyke sold 35,114 shares of Sonic Automotive stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.22, for a total value of $2,992,415.08. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 543,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,331,386.96. The trade was a 6.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 100,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,408,160 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 43.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SAH has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Sonic Automotive from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Barclays cut their price target on Sonic Automotive from $92.00 to $87.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Morgan Stanley lowered Sonic Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $72.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Sonic Automotive from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.33.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a publicly traded automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised new-car dealerships and used-vehicle dealerships across the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company offers a range of services that include vehicle sales, leasing, finance and insurance products, service and parts, and collision repair. Sonic Automotive’s dealerships represent numerous major automotive brands, and the company also markets a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles under its own banner.

In addition to its core dealership operations, Sonic Automotive has developed digital retail capabilities that allow customers to research, shop and complete transactions online.