HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Boosts Position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 143.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,082 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,066 shares during the quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $7,925,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABG. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 11.0% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,263 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,383,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 49.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 278,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,561,000 after purchasing an additional 91,767 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the first quarter worth approximately $265,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 11.4% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,639 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,687,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 3.4% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 51,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,316,000 after purchasing an additional 1,676 shares during the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ABG opened at $199.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $172.01 and a twelve month high of $274.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $196.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $215.98. The stock has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.74.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $5.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.62 by ($0.25). Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.05% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The firm had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.82 EPS. Asbury Automotive Group’s quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 25.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director B. Christopher Disantis acquired 157 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $182.31 per share, for a total transaction of $28,622.67. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 6,400 shares in the company, valued at $1,166,784. This represents a 2.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America assumed coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $242.00 target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. UBS Group started coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $202.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $260.00 to $212.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Asbury Automotive Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $232.00.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc (NYSE:ABG) is one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States. Headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, the company operates a network of franchised dealerships representing a diverse portfolio of automotive brands. Its core business activities include the sale of new and pre-owned vehicles, as well as the provision of vehicle finance, insurance and protection products to retail customers.

In addition to retail sales, Asbury offers a comprehensive suite of after-sales services, from scheduled maintenance and certified collision repair to parts distribution.