Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) President Jeff Dyke Sells 50,000 Shares

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) President Jeff Dyke sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.97, for a total transaction of $4,148,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 111,622 shares in the company, valued at $9,261,277.34. This represents a 30.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SAH traded up $0.61 during trading on Monday, hitting $82.77. 289,507 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 282,507. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.11 and a 1-year high of $89.62. The company has a market capitalization of $2.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93. The business’s 50 day moving average is $73.83 and its 200-day moving average is $66.57.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.22. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 22.45% and a net margin of 0.72%.The company had revenue of $3.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.48 EPS. Sonic Automotive’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from Sonic Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.41%.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,646,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,278,000 after buying an additional 96,836 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 3.8% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,313,857 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,088,000 after buying an additional 48,599 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 701,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,623,000 after buying an additional 62,426 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 510,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,608,000 after buying an additional 54,455 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 20.5% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 383,117 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,151,000 after acquiring an additional 65,266 shares during the period. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on SAH shares. Morgan Stanley set a $72.00 target price on Sonic Automotive in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays raised their target price on Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.00.

About Sonic Automotive

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.