Kestra Investment Management LLC Decreases Stake in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Kestra Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 23.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,507 shares of the company’s stock after selling 765 shares during the quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $426,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AN. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in AutoNation by 581.8% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 150 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of AutoNation by 150.8% in the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 403.6% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 282 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its position in AutoNation by 16.4% in the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 964 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in AutoNation in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $201,000. 94.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AN has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded AutoNation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on AutoNation from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $204.71.

AutoNation Price Performance

NYSE:AN opened at $189.67 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. AutoNation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $136.35 and a 52 week high of $198.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $180.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $173.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a PE ratio of 11.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 1.25.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $4.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.26 by $0.71. AutoNation had a return on equity of 30.98% and a net margin of 2.59%. As a group, equities analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.