Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) SVP Jed Milstein Sells 948 Shares of Stock

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) SVP Jed Milstein sold 948 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.28, for a total transaction of $237,265.44. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,817,902.52. This represents a 7.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of ABG opened at $231.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $206.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $209.49. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $172.01 and a twelve month high of $263.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.31 billion, a PE ratio of 8.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.74.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $6.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.31 by $0.51. The business had revenue of $4.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.49 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 12.74% and a net margin of 2.83%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $7.43 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABG. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Quarry LP raised its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 319.2% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 109 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 128 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 69.2% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on ABG. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $242.00 price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $212.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $249.57.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc (NYSE:ABG) is one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States. Headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, the company operates a network of franchised dealerships representing a diverse portfolio of automotive brands. Its core business activities include the sale of new and pre-owned vehicles, as well as the provision of vehicle finance, insurance and protection products to retail customers.

In addition to retail sales, Asbury offers a comprehensive suite of after-sales services, from scheduled maintenance and certified collision repair to parts distribution.