Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Stock Dropped to “Equal Weight” by Stephens

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) was downgraded by investment analysts at Stephens from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report released on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $200.00 price target on the stock. Stephens‘s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 0.01% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on ABG. UBS Group upped their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $193.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Seaport Research Partners upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Craig Hallum raised Asbury Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $232.00 price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $184.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $217.62.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Down 3.8%

Shares of NYSE ABG opened at $200.01 on Friday. Asbury Automotive Group has a 12-month low of $160.30 and a 12-month high of $258.74. The company has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a PE ratio of 7.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $187.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $202.60.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $6.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.42 by ($0.26). Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.66% and a return on equity of 11.85%. The business had revenue of $4.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.17 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Asbury Automotive Group will post 24.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Daytona Street Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 237.8% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 375 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the period.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group is a U.S. automotive retailer that operates franchised new- and used-vehicle dealerships. Its dealerships sell vehicles from a range of manufacturers and offer related services, including vehicle financing and insurance products, maintenance and repairs, parts sales, and collision repair. The company also operates Clicklane, a digital platform that lets customers research, purchase, finance, and arrange delivery of vehicles online. Asbury was founded in 1995 and has expanded through acquisitions, including its 2021 purchase of Larry H. Miller Dealerships.