Factorial Partners LLC Has $909,000 Position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Factorial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) by 57.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,350 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,950 shares during the period. Factorial Partners LLC's holdings in AutoNation were worth $909,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AN. State Street Corp raised its holdings in AutoNation by 2.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 854,034 shares of the company's stock worth $152,804,000 after purchasing an additional 19,037 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in AutoNation by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 433,730 shares of the company's stock worth $77,623,000 after buying an additional 18,588 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 6.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 320,888 shares of the company's stock worth $57,413,000 after acquiring an additional 19,015 shares in the last quarter. Simcoe Capital Management LLC bought a new position in AutoNation during the third quarter worth about $42,255,000. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in AutoNation in the third quarter valued at about $20,046,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com raised shares of AutoNation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $180.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on shares of AutoNation from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AutoNation currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $204.71.

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AutoNation Stock Up 1.6 %

AutoNation stock traded up $2.81 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $174.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 473,931 shares, compared to its average volume of 433,601. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.74. AutoNation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $143.88 and a 12 month high of $198.50. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $182.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $174.53. The company has a market capitalization of $6.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.25.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $4.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.26 by $0.71. AutoNation had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.59%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoNation Profile

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.