Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) PT Raised to $74.00 at Needham & Company LLC

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH - Free Report) had its price objective raised by Needham & Company LLC from $73.00 to $74.00 in a report published on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Needham & Company LLC currently has a buy rating on the stock.

SAH has been the subject of several other reports. Stephens initiated coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $64.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Sonic Automotive from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $40.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $66.50.

Sonic Automotive Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:SAH traded down $0.53 on Friday, reaching $56.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 226,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 197,074. The firm has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.49 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04. Sonic Automotive has a 12-month low of $46.33 and a 12-month high of $64.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $57.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.57.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.43 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.55 billion. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 25.31%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.02 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Sonic Automotive will post 5.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. This is an increase from Sonic Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Sonic Automotive's payout ratio is presently 22.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sonic Automotive

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SAH. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake in Sonic Automotive by 12.6% in the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 630,450 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,898,000 after purchasing an additional 70,540 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 456,588 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,870,000 after buying an additional 16,556 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 524.4% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 100,602 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,480,000 after buying an additional 84,489 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its position in Sonic Automotive by 679.8% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 95,006 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,175,000 after acquiring an additional 82,823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in Sonic Automotive by 26.8% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 88,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,838,000 after acquiring an additional 18,800 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.92% of the company's stock.

About Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.