Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Sells 8,710 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL cut its holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 383,180 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,710 shares during the quarter. AutoNation accounts for approximately 0.7% of Gamco Investors INC. ET AL’s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL owned approximately 0.97% of AutoNation worth $65,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its position in shares of AutoNation by 142.2% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 73,429 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,138,000 after acquiring an additional 43,113 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in AutoNation by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 327,165 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,566,000 after acquiring an additional 6,277 shares in the last quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in AutoNation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $255,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in AutoNation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $13,239,000. Finally, Foster & Motley Inc. boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 97.4% in the fourth quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 11,640 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,977,000 after purchasing an additional 5,742 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stephens upped their target price on shares of AutoNation from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com downgraded AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on AutoNation from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of AutoNation from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.86.

AutoNation Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of AN opened at $165.75 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $6.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.15. AutoNation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $148.33 and a twelve month high of $198.50. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $173.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $172.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $4.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.26 by $0.71. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.59% and a return on equity of 30.48%. As a group, analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 EPS for the current year.

About AutoNation

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.