Short Interest in Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) Declines By 7.7%

Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) saw a significant decline in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,810,000 shares, a decline of 7.7% from the August 15th total of 1,960,000 shares. Currently, 1.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 528,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Autohome Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of Autohome stock opened at $27.44 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.00 and a beta of 0.14. Autohome has a 52-week low of $21.89 and a 52-week high of $30.92. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.32.

Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information services provider reported $4.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $4.12. Autohome had a return on equity of 8.19% and a net margin of 25.81%. The company had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.59 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Autohome will post 1.96 EPS for the current year.

Autohome declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, September 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $28.00 price target (down previously from $31.00) on shares of Autohome in a report on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Benchmark cut Autohome from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autohome

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Autohome during the second quarter worth $345,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Autohome by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 93,995 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,580,000 after buying an additional 15,695 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its position in shares of Autohome by 85.0% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 18,335 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $503,000 after buying an additional 8,425 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Autohome in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,348,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Autohome by 205.8% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 24,189 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $664,000 after acquiring an additional 16,280 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.08% of the company’s stock.

About Autohome

Autohome Inc operates as an online destination for automobile consumers in the People's Republic of China. The company delivers interactive content and tools to automobile consumers through its three websites, autohome.com.cn, che168.com, and ttpai.cn on PCs, mobile devices, mobile applications, and mini apps.