Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $19.95

Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $19.95.

ATHM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Bank of America cut shares of Autohome from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $19.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Autohome from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Zacks Research raised Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $26.50 price objective on shares of Autohome in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday.

Autohome Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of Autohome stock opened at $22.37 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.08 and a beta of 0.36. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.04. Autohome has a 12-month low of $15.57 and a 12-month high of $25.22.

Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The information services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.07. Autohome had a return on equity of 4.00% and a net margin of 14.23%. The firm had revenue of $196.12 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.93 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.45 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Autohome will post 1.20 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Craig Yan Zeng sold 9,316 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.29, for a total value of $49,281.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 160,624 shares in the company, valued at $849,700.96. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Bibo Xiang sold 5,588 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.29, for a total value of $29,560.52. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 56,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $300,366.20. This trade represents a 8.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 49,304 shares of company stock valued at $260,818. Insiders own 5.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ATHM. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Autohome by 119.4% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,256 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 2,860 shares in the last quarter. Oldfield Partners LLP raised its holdings in Autohome by 20.3% during the second quarter. Oldfield Partners LLP now owns 49,800 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 8,400 shares during the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in Autohome during the first quarter worth $184,000. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Autohome by 35.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 72,460 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,259,000 after purchasing an additional 18,871 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vest Financial LLC boosted its position in Autohome by 35.9% during the third quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 71,514 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 18,891 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.08% of the company’s stock.

Autohome Company Profile

Autohome Inc operates online platforms focused on the automotive market in China. Through its websites and mobile applications, the company connects consumers with vehicle information and automotive businesses.

Its platforms provide car reviews, news, model specifications, pricing information, photos, videos and user discussions. Autohome also offers automakers and dealers advertising, marketing, customer-lead generation and data services.

Founded in 2005, Autohome serves consumers and automotive businesses across China.