# Sonic Automotive, Inc. (SAH)

> Source: Nexqual · https://nexqual.com/SAH · data as of 2026-10-22 20:00 UTC · cite as "Nexqual, Sonic Automotive, Inc. (SAH), nexqual.com/SAH" · informational, not investment advice.

**Price:** USD 63.14 (+4.05% on the day) · last close of Oct 22, 2026; US market pre market, not a live price. Prev close 60.68 · day 60.94–63.63 · 52w 54.11–113.67 · market cap $2.00B · NYQ

## Key facts
- Last four reported quarters (through Jun 30, 2026): revenue $15.5B, net income $212M (1.4% margin), free cash flow $95.7M (SEC filings).
- Valuation: P/E 9.4x (avg 13.2x at the last 3 fiscal year-ends), EV/EBITDA 5.6x, net debt $1.74B.
- Earnings quality: non-operating income -$200M vs operating income $510M over the last four quarters; P/E excluding non-operating income ≈4.8x (estimate: non-operating income taxed at the company's 0% effective rate).
- Insider open-market sales, last ~7 months: 4 Form 4 filings, $9.6M; 0 not under a Rule 10b5-1 plan ($0K); 2 by opportunistic insiders (0 outside 10b5-1 plans), 0 by routine insiders (three-year test, Cohen, Malloy & Pomorski 2012).
- Insider open-market purchases, last ~7 months: 5 Form 4 filings, $4.6M; 0 by opportunistic insiders, 0 by routine insiders.
- Analysts: Hold (mean 2.58 on a 1–5 scale) (12 analysts), mean target USD 87.55 (range 57–139).
- Total return with dividends: 1Y -1.4% vs S&P 500 +14.9%; 5Y +35.1% vs S&P 500 +80.3%.
- Next earnings: 2026-10-29, EPS estimate USD 1.66, revenue estimate $4.03B.

## Financials (SEC 10-K; TTM = last four 10-Q/10-K quarters)
| USD | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | TTM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $12.4B | $14.0B | $14.4B | $14.2B | $15.2B | $15.5B |
| Gross profit | $1.91B | $2.32B | $2.25B | $2.19B | $2.38B | — |
| Operating income | $538M | $314M | $424M | $462M | $368M | $510M |
| Net income | $349M | $88.5M | $178M | $216M | $119M | $212M |
| EPS (diluted) | $8.06 | $2.23 | $4.97 | $6.18 | $3.42 | — |
| Free cash flow | $8.1M | $179M | -$219M | -$78.1M | $418M | $95.7M |
| Gross margin | 15.4% | 16.5% | 15.6% | 15.4% | 15.7% | — |
| Operating margin | 4.3% | 2.2% | 2.9% | 3.2% | 2.4% | 3.3% |
| Net margin | 2.8% | 0.6% | 1.2% | 1.5% | 0.8% | 1.4% |
| Revenue growth | +26.9% | +12.9% | +2.7% | -1.0% | +6.5% | — |
| Cash + short-term investments | $299M | $229M | $28.9M | $44.0M | $6.3M | — |
| Total debt | $1.56B | $1.75B | $1.68B | $1.59B | $1.62B | — |
Fiscal years end Dec. EPS is split-adjusted.

## Valuation (price ÷ last four quarters, through Jun 30, 2026)
P/E 9.4x · P/E ex non-operating (est.) ≈4.8x · P/S 0.1x · EV/EBITDA 5.6x · EV/Sales 0.2x · P/FCF 20.9x · P/B 1.9x · FCF yield 4.79% · Earnings yield 10.62% · Dividend yield (paid, TTM) 2.37% · Buyback yield (TTM) 0.78% · Net debt $1.74B · EV $3.74B
P/E at fiscal year-ends: Dec 2025 18.1x, Dec 2024 10.3x, Dec 2023 11.3x.

## Insider sales (SEC Form 4, open-market, last ~7 months)
4 of 4 under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan (scheduled in advance). Unplanned sales were timed by the insider.
| Trade date | Insider | Role | Shares | Value | % of holdings sold | 10b5-1 plan | Insider type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-09…2026-06-10 | Dyke Jeff | President | 50,000 | $4.3M | 7.1% | Yes | Opportunistic (traded every year 2023–2025, no repeating month) |
| 2026-06-08 | Dyke Jeff | President | 50,000 | $4.1M | 6.6% | Yes | Opportunistic (traded every year 2023–2025, no repeating month) |
| 2026-06-02 | Byrd Heath | EVP and CFO | 5,061 | $430K | 3.3% | Yes | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2025) |
| 2026-05-28 | Byrd Heath | EVP and CFO | 9,526 | $810K | 5.9% | Yes | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2025) |
% of holdings sold = shares sold ÷ (shares sold + all holdings the insider reported on that Form 4, direct and through trusts).
Insider type follows Cohen, Malloy & Pomorski (Journal of Finance, 2012). An insider who traded the stock in the same calendar month in each of the past three years is a routine trader; one who traded in each of those years without such a pattern is an opportunistic trader. In their study, trades by opportunistic insiders predicted future returns and trades by routine insiders did not. Counts open-market purchases and sales only (SEC Form 4 codes P and S) by that insider in that company. Not investment advice.

## Insider purchases (SEC Form 4, open-market, last ~7 months)
5 purchases, $4.6M. Private placements, offerings, dividend reinvestment and employee stock purchase plan buys are excluded.
| Trade date | Insider | Role | Shares | Value | Avg price | Insider type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-14 | Rusnak Paul P. |  | 12,555 | $752K | 59.9 | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023–2025) |
| 2026-10-07 | Rusnak Paul P. |  | 13,701 | $819K | 59.78 | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023–2025) |
| 2026-10-06 | Rusnak Paul P. |  | 1,119 | $67K | 59.9 | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023–2025) |
| 2026-10-05 | Rusnak Paul P. |  | 27,756 | $1.7M | 59.76 | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023–2025) |
| 2026-10-01 | Rusnak Paul P. |  | 21,645 | $1.3M | 59.5 | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023–2025) |

## Analysts
Consensus Hold (mean 2.58 on a 1–5 scale), 12 analysts; mean target USD 87.55 (low 57, high 139).
Rating changes, last 120 days:
| Date | Firm | Action | Rating | Price target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-07 | UBS | Target lowered | Buy | $107 → $74 |
| 2026-10-06 | JP Morgan | Target lowered | Underweight | $72 → $64 |
| 2026-10-06 | Barclays | Target lowered | Equal-Weight | $87 → $75 |
| 2026-10-05 | Morgan Stanley | Target lowered | Underweight | $72 → $57 |
| 2026-08-19 | Barclays | Target lowered | Equal-Weight | $92 → $87 |
| 2026-08-04 | JP Morgan | Target lowered | Underweight | $76 → $72 |
| 2026-08-03 | Citigroup | Target raised | Buy | $95 → $115 |
| 2026-07-31 | Needham | Target raised | Buy | $90 → $139 |
| 2026-07-17 | Seaport Global | Downgrade | Buy → Neutral | $185 → $205 |
| 2026-07-15 | Barclays | Target raised | Equal-Weight | $77 → $92 |
| 2026-07-13 | JP Morgan | Target lowered | Underweight | $77 → $76 |
| 2026-07-10 | UBS | Target raised | Buy | $90 → $109 |

## Total return (dividends reinvested)
|  | 1Y (from 2025-10-23) | 5Y (from 2021-10-18) |
|---|---|---|
| Total return | -1.4% | +35.1% |
| S&P 500 (SPY) | +14.9% | +80.3% |
| Per year | -1.4% | +6.2% |
| Volatility (annualized) | 42.9% | 41.0% |
| Max drawdown | -46.6% (Jul 2026→Sep 2026) | -39.3% (Jul 2026→Oct 2026) |

## Peers (Auto & Truck Dealerships)
DRVN (Driven Brands Holdings Inc.) USD 11.82 +3.50% · ACVA (ACV Auctions Inc.) USD 10.5 +0.00% · BGSI (Boyd Group Services Inc.) USD 83.44 +4.31% · GPI (Group 1 Automotive, Inc.) USD 242.79 +7.98% · ABG (Asbury Automotive Group Inc) USD 173.43 +5.72% · VVV (Valvoline Inc.) USD 32.44 +4.24%

## More
Full page: https://nexqual.com/SAH · Free keyless MCP server with the same data and citations: https://mcp.nexqual.com/mcp · Guide for agents: https://nexqual.com/agents · https://nexqual.com/llms.txt

## Revenue by product line (quarter ended 2026-06-30)

| Line | Revenue | Share | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total vehicles | $3.19B | 81.2% | +7.9% |
| — Retail New Vehicles (part of Total vehicles) | $1.77B | 45.0% | +6.2% |
| — Used vehicles (part of Total vehicles) | $1.33B | 33.8% | +12.6% |
| — Wholesale vehicles (part of Total vehicles) | $70.5M | 1.8% | -15.4% |
| — Fleet New Vehicles (part of Total vehicles) | $24.8M | 0.6% | -15.6% |
| New vehicles | $1.79B | 45.6% | +5.8% |
| Parts, service and collision repair | $530.2M | 13.5% | +7.0% |
| Finance, insurance and other, net | $209.5M | 5.3% | +3.7% |
| Total revenue | $3.93B | 100% | — |
The lines above cover 145.6% of total revenue.

## Analyst estimates and revisions

| Period | EPS est. | 90d ago | Change | Revenue est. | Analysts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current quarter (ends 2026-09-30) | $1.66 | $1.87 | -11.6% | $4.03B | 10 |
| Next quarter (ends 2026-12-31) | $1.59 | $1.76 | -9.8% | $4.04B | 10 |
| Current fiscal year (ends 2026-12-31) | $6.69 | $6.92 | -3.4% | $15.69B | 11 |
| Next fiscal year (ends 2027-12-31) | $7.26 | $7.60 | -4.5% | $16.37B | 11 |

## Options: expected move (Cboe, 15-min delayed)

Expected move by 2026-11-20 (includes earnings 2026-10-29): ±12.1%; last 8 reports averaged ±7.3%.

| Expiration | Days | ATM IV | Expected move |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-11-20 | 28 | 52.1% | ±12.1% |
| 2026-12-18 | 56 | 48.3% | ±15.7% |
| 2027-02-19 | 119 | 45.2% | ±21.0% |
| 2027-05-21 | 210 | 45.8% | ±27.8% |