Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Stock Moved Down to Sell by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $107.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $63.00 to $58.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Stephens set a $89.00 price target on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Seaport Research Partners downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $72.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.62.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

SAH opened at $61.67 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.95. Sonic Automotive has a 52-week low of $54.11 and a 52-week high of $113.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a PE ratio of 9.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.98. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $66.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.07.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by ($0.36). Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.33% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The business had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. Sonic Automotive’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Sonic Automotive will post 6.42 EPS for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be paid a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.37%.

Insider Transactions at Sonic Automotive

In other news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak acquired 27,756 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $59.76 per share, for a total transaction of $1,658,698.56. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 5,149,401 shares in the company, valued at $307,728,203.76. This trade represents a 0.54% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders acquired a total of 76,776 shares of company stock valued at $4,584,694 in the last ninety days. 43.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 32.6% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 776 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the second quarter worth about $88,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the first quarter worth about $79,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 15.5% in the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the second quarter worth about $208,000. 46.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a U.S.-based automotive retailer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company operates franchised dealerships that sell new and pre-owned vehicles from a range of automobile manufacturers, along with related automotive products and services.

Its dealership operations provide vehicle financing and insurance products, maintenance and repair services, replacement parts, and collision-repair services. Sonic Automotive also operates EchoPark Automotive, a used-vehicle business focused on offering pre-owned vehicles and related finance and service products through dedicated retail locations.

Founded in 1997 by automotive entrepreneur O.