Seaport Res Ptn Brokers Decrease Earnings Estimates for SAH

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) – Stock analysts at Seaport Res Ptn cut their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, November 21st. Seaport Res Ptn analyst G. Chin now anticipates that the company will earn $5.50 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $5.70. Seaport Res Ptn currently has a “Strong-Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Sonic Automotive’s current full-year earnings is $5.60 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Sonic Automotive’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.41 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $6.15 EPS.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised Sonic Automotive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America decreased their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Sonic Automotive from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Stephens assumed coverage on Sonic Automotive in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $64.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sonic Automotive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.40.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

SAH stock opened at $69.42 on Monday. Sonic Automotive has a 1 year low of $47.82 and a 1 year high of $70.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.37 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35 and a beta of 1.61. The company’s 50-day moving average is $59.00 and its 200-day moving average is $57.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.55 billion. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 21.27% and a net margin of 1.41%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.02 earnings per share.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SAH. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the second quarter worth $41,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 100.3% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 1,196 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. AM Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the second quarter valued at $82,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 2,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $158,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $228,000. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This is a positive change from Sonic Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.02%. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.91%.

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.