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Exchange Traded Concepts LLC cut its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH – Get Rating) by 21.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,649 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,740 shares during the quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings in Sonic Automotive were worth $742,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 18,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $897,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in Sonic Automotive by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 5,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $210,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can boosted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 19,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $830,000 after buying an additional 326 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 1.1% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 33,525 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,425,000 after buying an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Delphia USA Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 9.0% during the first quarter. Delphia USA Inc. now owns 5,085 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,000 after buying an additional 422 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.68% of the company’s stock.
Insider Buying and Selling at Sonic Automotive
In other news, CFO Heath Byrd sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.07, for a total transaction of $189,245.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 168,622 shares in the company, valued at $9,117,391.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Heath Byrd sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.07, for a total transaction of $189,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 168,622 shares in the company, valued at $9,117,391.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, President Jeff Dyke sold 86,596 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.80, for a total value of $4,399,076.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 814,199 shares in the company, valued at approximately $41,361,309.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 101,432 shares of company stock worth $5,200,693. 40.95% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Sonic Automotive Trading Up 0.8 %
Shares of Sonic Automotive stock opened at $46.93 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.83. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 12-month low of $34.17 and a 12-month high of $62.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24. The stock has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.33 and a beta of 1.82.
Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 27th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.84 by ($0.51). Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 0.27% and a return on equity of 33.13%. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.33 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This is a positive change from Sonic Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is 181.25%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SAH shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 28th. StockNews.com started coverage on Sonic Automotive in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Benchmark cut their price target on Sonic Automotive from $71.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Monday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sonic Automotive has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.33.
Sonic Automotive Company Profile
Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.
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