AutoNation
stock has trounced the market in recent years, and longtime investor and hedge fund manager Eddie Lampert has been trimming his stake in the largest U.S. auto retailer.
AutoNation shares have fallen from a record trading high of $182.08 set in July 2023, though they still ended that year with a 40% gain compared with a 24% rise in the S&P 500. In 2021 and 2022, shares rocketed 67% and slipped 8%, respectively, while the index rose 27% and dropped 19%.
Lampert has been a regular seller through it all, and his latest transaction and first for 2024 was on Jan. 10, when he sold 77,284 AutoNation shares for $11 million, an average price of $142.58 each. According to forms he filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Lampert now owns 4.8 million shares, an 11.3% stake, and remains the company’s second-largest shareholder. That stake includes a few thousand shares held through trusts Lampert controls.
ESL Investments, Lampert’s fund, didn’t respond to a request to make him available for comment on his stock sales.
AutoNation’s largest shareholder is Cascade Investment, an investment vehicle of
Microsoft
co-founder Bill Gates. Cascade owns 9.9 million AutoNation shares, a stake of more than 22%. In contrast with Lampert’s sales, regulatory records show Cascade hasn’t sold any AutoNation shares since October 2021.
Inside Scoop is a regular Barron’s feature covering stock transactions by corporate executives and board members—so-called insiders—as well as large shareholders, politicians, and other prominent figures. Due to their insider status, these investors are required to disclose stock trades with the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory groups.
Write to Ed Lin at [email protected] and follow @BarronsEdLin.
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