Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.23 EPS

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) issued its earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $6.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.58 by ($0.23), Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 17.93%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $8.12 EPS.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE:ABG traded up $1.61 on Wednesday, hitting $233.03. 152,202 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 184,915. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $229.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $231.40. Asbury Automotive Group has a 52 week low of $186.29 and a 52 week high of $277.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The company has a market cap of $4.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.58 and a beta of 1.16.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens started coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $190.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Craig Hallum raised their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Asbury Automotive Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $257.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total value of $113,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,911,548.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Asbury Automotive Group news, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.63, for a total transaction of $1,884,687.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,008,649 shares of the company's stock, valued at $453,211,473.87. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total value of $113,590.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares in the company, valued at $12,911,548.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.