JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Price Target to $64.00

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) had its price objective decreased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $72.00 to $64.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an underweight rating on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on SAH. Bank of America raised their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Citigroup increased their price target on Sonic Automotive from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $87.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $90.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $90.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $90.12.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SAH opened at $61.40 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. Sonic Automotive has a twelve month low of $54.11 and a twelve month high of $113.67. The company has a market capitalization of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.92.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 20.75% and a net margin of 1.37%.The firm had revenue of $3.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Sonic Automotive will post 6.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.16%.

Insider Activity

In other Sonic Automotive news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak acquired 1,119 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $59.90 per share, for a total transaction of $67,028.10. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 5,150,520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $308,516,148. This trade represents a 0.02% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 50,520 shares of company stock valued at $3,013,604. 43.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SAH. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 1st quarter worth $79,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Sonic Automotive in the 2nd quarter worth $88,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC lifted its position in Sonic Automotive by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the second quarter valued at about $208,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 2,981.1% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 4,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 3,935 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

More Sonic Automotive News

Here are the key news stories impacting Sonic Automotive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Paul Rusnak bought 21,645 shares for approximately $1.29 million on October 1, 27,756 shares for about $1.66 million on October 5, and another 1,119 shares for roughly $67,000 on October 6. The purchases increased his already substantial position to more than 5.15 million shares and may signal confidence that SAH is undervalued after its decline. Insider buying report
• Positive Sentiment: UBS maintained a “Buy” rating on Sonic Automotive, suggesting it still sees potential upside despite reducing its price target to $74 from $107. The continued Buy rating may help support the shares. UBS price target update
• Neutral Sentiment: Sonic Automotive scheduled its third-quarter 2026 earnings release for October 29 before the market opens, followed by a management conference call. Investors will be watching dealership demand, used-vehicle trends, margins, and guidance for signs that the recent weakness is temporary. Third-quarter earnings announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays retained its “Hold” rating, underscoring the mixed analyst view on SAH. The lack of broad conviction could limit gains until the company reports its next results. Barclays rating
• Negative Sentiment: UBS’s large price-target reduction, despite retaining its Buy rating, signals that analysts have lowered their assumptions for Sonic Automotive’s earnings or valuation. This offsets some of the benefit from the insider purchases.

About Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc is an automotive retailer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company operates franchised dealerships that sell new and used cars and light trucks from a range of manufacturers, along with related automotive products and services.

Its dealership operations provide vehicle financing and insurance products, parts and maintenance services, collision repair, and other after-sales support. Sonic Automotive also operates EchoPark Automotive, a used-vehicle retail business focused on providing a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles and related services.

Founded in 1997 by automotive entrepreneur O.