Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (CAR) from NEUTRAL to UNDERPERFORM on November 30, 2012, with a target price of $17.00.
We downgraded our long-term recommendation on Avis Budget to Underperform as the company trimmed its revenue and earnings outlook for fiscal 2012 following lower-than-expected bottom-line results for third-quarter 2012. Avis Budget's adjusted earnings of $1.46 per share for the quarter missed the Zacks Consensus Estimates of $1.51 primarily due to a sluggish travel demand in Europe. Further, citing weak economic situation in Europe, the company now expects full-year total revenue to be $7.3 billion, instead of $7.3-$7.6 billion projected earlier. On the basis of its revenue assumption, the company trimmed the earnings outlook to $2.35-$2.45 per share compared with $2.35-$2.65 forecasted earlier. Moreover, we remain cautious over the stock's future performance due to a possible rise in fleet costs in North America in 2013, which may adversely affect its margins.
Get all Zacks Research Reports and be alerted to fast-breaking buy and sell opportunities every trading day.
To get a free copy of the research report on Avis Budget Group, Inc. (CAR),
click here.
For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit
Zacks.com .
Be the first to comment