Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE: SAH)’s stock price has gone rise by 10.86 in comparison to its previous close of 51.12, however, the company has experienced a 17.92% increase in its stock price over the last five trading days. Zacks Investment Research reported 2024-04-25 that The headline numbers for Sonic Automotive (SAH) give insight into how the company performed in the quarter ended March 2024, but it may be worthwhile to compare some of its key metrics to Wall Street estimates and the year-ago actuals.
Is It Worth Investing in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE: SAH) Right Now?
Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE: SAH) has a price-to-earnings ratio that is above its average at 11.39x. The stock has a 36-month beta value of 1.80. Opinions on the stock are mixed, with 1 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 0 as “overweight,” 4 as “hold,” and 2 as “sell.”
The public float for SAH is 12.73M, and at present, short sellers hold a 17.36% of that float. On April 26, 2024, the average trading volume of SAH was 226.63K shares.
SAH’s Market Performance
SAH’s stock has seen a 17.92% increase for the week, with a 4.73% rise in the past month and a 8.69% gain in the past quarter. The volatility ratio for the week is 3.24%, and the volatility levels for the past 30 days are at 2.89% for Sonic Automotive, Inc. The simple moving average for the past 20 days is 9.41% for SAH’s stock, with a 10.37% simple moving average for the past 200 days.
Analysts’ Opinion of SAH
Many brokerage firms have already submitted their reports for SAH stocks, with JP Morgan repeating the rating for SAH by listing it as a “Underweight.” The predicted price for SAH in the upcoming period, according to JP Morgan is $50 based on the research report published on October 31, 2023 of the previous year 2023.
JP Morgan, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see SAH reach a price target of $55, previously predicting the price at $60. The rating they have provided for SAH stocks is “Neutral” according to the report published on February 21st, 2023.
JP Morgan gave a rating of “Overweight” to SAH, setting the target price at $60 in the report published on October 06th of the previous year.
SAH Trading at 8.23% from the 50-Day Moving Average
After a stumble in the market that brought SAH to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -5.93% of loss for the given period.
Volatility was left at 2.89%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 3.24%, as shares surge +0.85% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading -1.36% lower at present.
During the last 5 trading sessions, SAH rose by +17.92%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by +13.11% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $51.82. In addition, Sonic Automotive, Inc. saw 0.82% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further gains.
Insider Trading
Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at SAH starting from Byrd Heath, who sale 34,186 shares at the price of $54.01 back on Sep 14 ’23. After this action, Byrd Heath now owns 168,622 shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc., valued at $1,846,249 using the latest closing price.
Byrd Heath, the EVP and CFO of Sonic Automotive, Inc., sale 3,800 shares at $54.00 during a trade that took place back on Sep 06 ’23, which means that Byrd Heath is holding 168,622 shares at $205,200 based on the most recent closing price.
Stock Fundamentals for SAH
Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:
- 0.03 for the present operating margin
- 0.15 for the gross margin
The net margin for Sonic Automotive, Inc. stands at 0.01. The total capital return value is set at 0.14. Equity return is now at value 19.94, with 3.45 for asset returns.
Based on Sonic Automotive, Inc. (SAH), the company’s capital structure generated 0.79 points at debt to capital in total, while cash flow to debt ratio is standing at -0.01. The debt to equity ratio resting at 3.8. The interest coverage ratio of the stock is 2.42.
Currently, EBITDA for the company is 665.9 million with net debt to EBITDA at 5.94. When we switch over and look at the enterprise to sales, we see a ratio of 0.4. The receivables turnover for the company is 27.22for trailing twelve months and the total asset turnover is 2.68. The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 1.10.
Conclusion
To sum up, Sonic Automotive, Inc. (SAH) has seen a better performance recently. Analysts have differing views on the stock, with some seeing it as a “buy” and others as a “hold”. It is worth mentioning that the stock is currently trading in close proximity to its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.
