Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Purchases New Position in Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 204,270 shares of the information services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,663,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned 0.17% of Autohome as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ATHM. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in Autohome by 4.9% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 7,448 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $195,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its position in shares of Autohome by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 37,907 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $1,238,000 after buying an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Autohome during the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Autohome by 23.5% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,098 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $195,000 after acquiring an additional 1,351 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning grew its position in Autohome by 14.2% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 20,938 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $683,000 after acquiring an additional 2,603 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.08% of the company's stock.

Autohome Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:ATHM traded down $0.06 on Friday, reaching $27.94. 501,875 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 477,474. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.90 and a beta of 0.20. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $28.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.54. Autohome Inc. has a 52 week low of $21.89 and a 52 week high of $34.70.

Autohome announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, September 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Autohome Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $1.15 per share. This represents a yield of 5.8%. This is a positive change from Autohome's previous Variable dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Autohome's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ATHM shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Autohome to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. CLSA cut Autohome from an "outperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Autohome to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Autohome from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.00.

About Autohome

Autohome Inc operates as an online destination for automobile consumers in the People's Republic of China. The company delivers interactive content and tools to automobile consumers through its three websites, autohome.com.cn, che168.com, and ttpai.cn on PCs, mobile devices, mobile applications, and mini apps.