Verition Fund Management LLC Sells 7,518 Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

Verition Fund Management LLC lessened its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 49.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,600 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,518 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $1,813,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 366.1% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 189,586 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,233,000 after purchasing an additional 148,910 shares during the period. Eminence Capital LP grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 41.5% during the 2nd quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 498,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $113,603,000 after acquiring an additional 146,246 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,573,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 7.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,056,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,818,000 after acquiring an additional 69,975 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $154,270,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ABG shares. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $190.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stephens started coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price target for the company. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $256.20.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Down 2.3 %

ABG opened at $259.16 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $243.45 and a 200-day moving average of $237.56. The company has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.67 and a beta of 1.18. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $195.09 and a fifty-two week high of $277.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.58 by ($0.23). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 2.16%. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $8.12 EPS. Asbury Automotive Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

Asbury Automotive Group Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.