Davis Capital Management Purchases 79 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Davis Capital Management increased its position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,703 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 79 shares during the quarter. AutoNation makes up about 1.3% of Davis Capital Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Davis Capital Management’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $1,648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its holdings in AutoNation by 142.2% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 73,429 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,138,000 after buying an additional 43,113 shares during the period. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in AutoNation in the 2nd quarter worth $602,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoNation during the 3rd quarter valued at about $585,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 33.8% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,899 shares of the company’s stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 320,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,413,000 after purchasing an additional 19,015 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AN has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $169.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of AutoNation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $200.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $190.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $197.71.

AutoNation Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of AutoNation stock opened at $184.93 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $174.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $171.39. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $136.35 and a 1 year high of $197.18. The stock has a market cap of $7.33 billion, a PE ratio of 10.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.26.

About AutoNation

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.