River Road Asset Management LLC Sells 12,669 Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

River Road Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 19.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 53,961 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,669 shares during the quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC owned 0.27% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $12,875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 292 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the second quarter worth $155,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the second quarter valued at about $190,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ABG. Craig Hallum boosted their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $190.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $216.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Asbury Automotive Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $256.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Up 7.1 %

Shares of ABG traded up $17.16 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $259.20. 358,676 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 185,716. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $195.09 and a 12 month high of $277.13. The company has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.70 and a beta of 1.16. The company's fifty day moving average price is $229.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.58 by ($0.23). The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.30 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 2.16%. The firm's revenue was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $8.12 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 25.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

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.