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AutoNation (AN) Gains As Market Dips: What You Should Know

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AutoNation (AN - Free Report) closed at $120.25 in the latest trading session, marking a +0.7% move from the prior day. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily loss of 1.3%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the auto retailer had gained 12.39% over the past month. This has outpaced the Retail-Wholesale sector's loss of 5.69% and the S&P 500's loss of 3.58% in that time.

AN will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. In that report, analysts expect AN to post earnings of $4.33 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 81.93%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $6.43 billion, up 19.04% from the year-ago period.

AN's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $15.92 per share and revenue of $25.89 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +123.6% and +26.96%, respectively.

It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for AN. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 7.27% higher. AN is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Investors should also note AN's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 7.5. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 8.04.

Meanwhile, AN's PEG ratio is currently 0.39. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Automotive - Retail and Whole Sales was holding an average PEG ratio of 0.43 at yesterday's closing price.

The Automotive - Retail and Whole Sales industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 14, putting it in the top 6% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.


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