Stifel Financial Corp Grows Position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 1,990.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,926 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,973 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned about 0.10% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $4,754,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,056,825 shares of the company's stock valued at $240,818,000 after buying an additional 69,975 shares in the last quarter. Eminence Capital LP boosted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 41.5% during the second quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 498,542 shares of the company's stock worth $113,603,000 after buying an additional 146,246 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 4.1% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 197,765 shares of the company's stock worth $45,065,000 after purchasing an additional 7,754 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 366.1% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 189,586 shares of the company's stock worth $45,233,000 after purchasing an additional 148,910 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the third quarter valued at about $26,573,000.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

NYSE ABG traded up $3.16 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $256.88. The stock had a trading volume of 159,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 182,227. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $246.74 and a 200 day moving average of $238.77. The stock has a market cap of $5.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.54 and a beta of 1.18. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $195.09 and a 52-week high of $277.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 1.20.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.58 by ($0.23). Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.16% and a return on equity of 16.51%. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $8.12 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Craig Hallum boosted their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $256.20.

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.