Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) Shares Up 10.6% - Here's Why

Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report) shares traded up 10.6% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $60.82 and last traded at $61.35. 965,296 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 20% from the average session volume of 805,479 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.49.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Avis Budget Group from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Northcoast Research downgraded shares of Avis Budget Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $133.75.

Avis Budget Group Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.14 and a beta of 2.37. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $83.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.59.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported ($0.23) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.50) by $0.27. Avis Budget Group had a negative net margin of 15.45% and a negative return on equity of 14.74%. As a group, analysts expect that Avis Budget Group, Inc. will post 8.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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Insider Activity

In other news, Director Lynn Krominga sold 661 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $62,795.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,355 shares of the company's stock, valued at $318,725. The trade was a 16.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 52.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avis Budget Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CAR. FMR LLC grew its stake in Avis Budget Group by 4.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,354,546 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $293,825,000 after buying an additional 129,805 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 2.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 672,227 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $58,880,000 after purchasing an additional 16,221 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 592,341 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $51,883,000 after purchasing an additional 2,561 shares during the period. Nomura Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 93.2% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 490,473 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $39,537,000 after purchasing an additional 236,576 shares during the period. Finally, JAT Capital Mgmt LP boosted its stake in Avis Budget Group by 24.5% during the 3rd quarter. JAT Capital Mgmt LP now owns 398,170 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $34,876,000 after acquiring an additional 78,383 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.35% of the company's stock.

Avis Budget Group Company Profile

Avis Budget Group, Inc engages in the provision of vehicle sharing and rental services. It operates through the following segments: Americas, International, and Corporate and Other. The Americas segment includes the vehicle rental and car sharing operations in North America, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean.