Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt Buys Shares of 13,550 AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt bought a new position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 13,550 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,517,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 8.9% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 18,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,070,000 after buying an additional 1,551 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in AutoNation during the 1st quarter worth $265,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in AutoNation by 10.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 98,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,967,000 after buying an additional 9,656 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 17.3% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 3,472 shares of the company’s stock worth $562,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 37.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 235 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In other news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total transaction of $198,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,757,580. This represents a 10.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

AutoNation Trading Up 0.8%

AN opened at $200.35 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.71. AutoNation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $176.62 and a 12 month high of $235.81. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $201.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $5.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.48 by $0.08. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.24% and a net margin of 2.82%.The firm had revenue of $6.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.26 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 21.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup boosted their target price on AutoNation from $287.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Northcoast Research raised AutoNation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $240.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on AutoNation from $235.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on AutoNation from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners reissued a “buy” rating and set a $255.00 target price on shares of AutoNation in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $250.00.

About AutoNation

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.