-- CFRA, an independent research provider, has providedwith the following research alert. Analysts at CFRA have summarized their opinion as follows:
Asbury Automotive Group (ABG) posted Q1 2026 adjusted EPS of $5.37 vs. $6.82 prior year (-24% Y/Y), short of the $5.62 consensus. Revenue fell 1% to $4.11B ($260M below consensus) and gross margin expanded 20 bps to 17.7% (40 bps above consensus). The revenue shortfall was led by the Finance & Insurance (-4%), New (-2%), and Used Vehicle (-2%) segments, with only Parts & Service (+7%) showing growth. Looking at sales volumes, both new (-5%) and used vehicles (-6%) posted unit declines, but average price realizations were higher (+4% for new and +5% for used). ABG's gross margin improvement was led by the Used Vehicle (+60 bps) segment, partially offset by flat Parts & Service margin and weaker New Vehicle margin (-60 bps). In Q1, ABG repurchased 678K shares for a total of $147M. The quarter marked ABG's first earnings miss in the last six quarters. ABG does not provide formal guidance, but we were at least encouraged by its margin performance. ABG shares are currently trading down 1% in pre-market activity.