Krane Funds Advisors LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Autohome Inc. $ATHM

Krane Funds Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,095,012 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 292,040 shares during the quarter. Autohome makes up approximately 2.2% of Krane Funds Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Krane Funds Advisors LLC owned 2.65% of Autohome worth $68,895,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATHM. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Autohome by 12.2% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,968,365 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $227,497,000 after buying an additional 868,151 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Autohome by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,682,506 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $59,713,000 after acquiring an additional 39,969 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its holdings in Autohome by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,304,270 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $37,237,000 after acquiring an additional 89,057 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Autohome by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 718,526 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $15,994,000 after purchasing an additional 63,288 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Autohome during the fourth quarter worth $14,167,000. 63.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Autohome Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE ATHM opened at $16.52 on Monday. Autohome Inc. has a 12-month low of $15.57 and a 12-month high of $29.92. The company has a market cap of $1.90 billion, a PE ratio of 12.61 and a beta of 0.23. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.40.

Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Sunday, February 15th. The information services provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $208.96 million during the quarter. Autohome had a return on equity of 5.01% and a net margin of 17.91%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Autohome Inc. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Autohome Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. Autohome’s payout ratio is 183.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ATHM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Autohome in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Autohome from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. HSBC cut shares of Autohome from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $17.30 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Autohome from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $17.15.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Yan Zeng sold 24,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total value of $105,705.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 169,940 shares in the company, valued at $739,239. This trade represents a 12.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CTO Bibo Xiang sold 10,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total transaction of $45,709.80. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 62,368 shares in the company, valued at $271,300.80. This represents a 14.42% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Corporate insiders own 5.70% of the company’s stock.

About Autohome

Autohome Inc (NYSE: ATHM) operates one of China’s leading online destinations for automobile consumers, offering a comprehensive suite of digital platforms and services throughout the vehicle ownership lifecycle. Headquartered in Beijing, the company’s core website and mobile applications deliver news, reviews, pricing information, photos, videos and interactive tools to help prospective buyers evaluate new and used vehicles. By aggregating rich editorial content with user-generated ratings and expert analyses, Autohome seeks to guide consumers through research, purchase and after-sales decision-making.

In addition to its consumer-facing properties, Autohome provides automakers, dealers and service providers with integrated digital marketing and e-commerce solutions.