Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) Stock Gets Downgrade from Zacks Research

Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $26.50 target price on shares of Autohome in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Weiss Ratings raised Autohome from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America cut Autohome from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $19.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $19.95.

Autohome Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:ATHM opened at $21.58 on Wednesday. Autohome has a fifty-two week low of $15.57 and a fifty-two week high of $25.22. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.02. The company has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a PE ratio of 22.95 and a beta of 0.36.

Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The information services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.07. Autohome had a net margin of 14.23% and a return on equity of 4.07%. The firm had revenue of $196.12 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $189.93 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.45 earnings per share. Autohome’s quarterly revenue was down 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Autohome will post 1.20 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Autohome news, CFO Craig Yan Zeng sold 9,316 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.29, for a total value of $49,281.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 160,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $849,700.96. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Quan Long sold 34,400 shares of Autohome stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.29, for a total value of $181,976.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 175,984 shares in the company, valued at approximately $930,955.36. This trade represents a 16.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 49,304 shares of company stock worth $260,818. Insiders own 5.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Autohome

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in Autohome by 119.4% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,256 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 2,860 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in Autohome during the 1st quarter worth $184,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in Autohome by 104.6% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 11,169 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 5,709 shares during the period. Oldfield Partners LLP grew its stake in shares of Autohome by 20.3% in the second quarter. Oldfield Partners LLP now owns 49,800 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $948,000 after purchasing an additional 8,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Autohome by 35.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 72,460 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,259,000 after purchasing an additional 18,871 shares in the last quarter. 63.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Autohome

Autohome Inc. operates online platforms focused on the automotive market in China. Through its websites and mobile applications, the company connects consumers with vehicle information and automotive businesses. Its platforms provide car reviews, news, model specifications, pricing information, photos, videos and user discussions. Autohome also offers automakers and dealers advertising, marketing, customer-lead generation and data services. Founded in 2005, Autohome serves consumers and automotive businesses across China.