Gotham Asset Management LLC Purchases 19,890 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 31.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 83,338 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,890 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned about 0.21% of AutoNation worth $14,154,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,814,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,312,000 after buying an additional 203,335 shares during the period. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC raised its stake in AutoNation by 50.3% during the fourth quarter. Brave Warrior Advisors LLC now owns 1,461,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $248,172,000 after buying an additional 488,904 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 63.0% in the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,104,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,662,000 after acquiring an additional 426,882 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 23.3% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 851,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $144,682,000 after acquiring an additional 160,794 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its position in AutoNation by 422.7% in the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 575,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,658,000 after acquiring an additional 465,000 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AutoNation Stock Performance

NYSE AN opened at $179.77 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.61, a PEG ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.00. The business’s 50 day moving average is $167.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $173.44. AutoNation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $148.33 and a 12-month high of $198.50. 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 issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $4.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.35 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $6.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.53 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.59% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.49 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup raised AutoNation to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of AutoNation from $194.00 to $176.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. StockNews.com raised AutoNation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Cfra Research raised AutoNation to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AutoNation has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $200.75.

AutoNation Company Profile

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.