First Trust Advisors LP Increases Holdings in Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

by · The Markets Daily

First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH – Free Report) by 80.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,576 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,753 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.12% of Sonic Automotive worth $2,577,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SAH. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 37.1% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 13,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $795,000 after buying an additional 3,777 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Sonic Automotive by 13.6% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 23,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,328,000 after acquiring an additional 2,793 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Sonic Automotive by 5.8% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $504,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 124.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 355,328 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,239,000 after acquiring an additional 197,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 15.8% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 38,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,204,000 after acquiring an additional 5,286 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonic Automotive

In other Sonic Automotive news, President Jeff Dyke sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.97, for a total transaction of $4,148,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president owned 111,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,261,277.34. This trade represents a 30.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 100,000 shares of company stock worth $8,408,160 over the last ninety days. 43.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of SAH stock opened at $82.33 on Friday. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $54.11 and a 12 month high of $113.67. The stock has a market cap of $2.60 billion, a PE ratio of 13.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $88.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.73.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.07. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.37% and a return on equity of 20.75%. The company had revenue of $3.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.19 EPS. Sonic Automotive’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is 26.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of Sonic Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $72.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday. Seaport Research Partners downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Stephens set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $77.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $97.89.

Check Out Our Latest Report on Sonic Automotive

About Sonic Automotive

(Free Report)

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a publicly traded automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised new-car dealerships and used-vehicle dealerships across the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company offers a range of services that include vehicle sales, leasing, finance and insurance products, service and parts, and collision repair. Sonic Automotive’s dealerships represent numerous major automotive brands, and the company also markets a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles under its own banner.

In addition to its core dealership operations, Sonic Automotive has developed digital retail capabilities that allow customers to research, shop and complete transactions online.

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