Sonic Automotive's recent earnings beats and attractive forward P/E of 11.1x suggest underlying operational resilience, but 26% short interest, negative analyst upside, and a quality score below the minimum threshold collectively argue against new positions at current levels.
Thesis pillars
- Valuation Discount Forward Pe↑Improving
- Recent Earnings Beats Resilience→Stable
- High Short Interest Signal↓Deteriorating
- +1 more pillar — see the Why tab for full reasoning
Sonic Automotive, Inc. (SAH) Stock Analysis
Consumer Cyclical · Auto & Truck Dealerships
Sell if holding. Engine safety override at $80.83: Quality below floor (2.9 < 4.0) triggers a hard block regardless of the otherwise-positive setup — overall score 5.1/10. Specifically: High short interest: 21%; Elevated put/call ratio: 2.25; Below-average business quality.
Sonic Automotive operates 111 franchised dealerships (representing 24 brands across 18 states), 18 EchoPark pre-owned vehicle stores, and 14 powersports stores. Revenue comes from vehicle sales, service, parts, and F&I product commissions; the Franchised Dealerships Segment... Read more
Sell if holding. Engine safety override at $80.83: Quality below floor (2.9 < 4.0) triggers a hard block regardless of the otherwise-positive setup — overall score 5.1/10. Specifically: High short interest: 21%; Elevated put/call ratio: 2.25; Below-average business quality. Chart setup: No clear chart pattern; technical signals are mixed. Score 5.1/10, moderate confidence.
Passes 5/9 gates (positive momentum, news events none recent, earnings proximity 73d clear, semi cycle peak clear, materials cycle peak clear). Fails on favorable risk/reward ratio. Suitability: aggressive.
About Sonic Automotive, Inc.
About Sonic Automotive, Inc.
Sonic Automotive operated 143 total stores at December 31, 2025 — 111 franchised dealerships representing 24 brands across 18 states, 18 EchoPark pre-owned stores in 10 states, and 14 powersports locations — with Texas (26.2% of 2025 revenue) and California (24.6%) together accounting for just over half of total revenue. Luxury and mid-line import brands represented 86% of new vehicle revenue in 2025, led by BMW at 23% of the new vehicle mix. The Franchised Dealerships Segment contributed 85.0% of total revenue.
Sonic earns revenue across three segments: Franchised Dealerships (85.0% of 2025 revenue), EchoPark pre-owned stores (13.7%), and Powersports (1.3%). The franchised model generates sales from new and used vehicles, higher-margin Fixed Operations (parts, service, and warranty work exclusive to franchised dealers), and F&I commissions on third-party financing and aftermarket products. The company works with a single third-party provider for the majority of its extended warranties, service contracts and other aftermarket products — concentrating product-guarantee revenue in one counterparty relationship. EchoPark targets 90% of US population coverage at maturity but does not offer Fixed Operations, making it dependent on vehicle margin and F&I commissions. Luxury and import brands together accounted for 86% of new vehicle revenues, compared with 14% for domestic brands.
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The company's luxury-concentrated franchise portfolio — with 63% of new vehicle revenues from premium brands — exposes it to outsized demand risk if consumer confidence weakens among high-income buyers, and to supply risk from tariffs on imported automobiles and parts announced by the US government in 2025. Many top brands including BMW, Mercedes, Land Rover, and Audi are manufactured outside the US, so tariff pass-through to consumers could weigh on sales volumes and gross profit per unit, which the 10-K notes trended downward from pandemic-era peaks as inventory normalized.
See also: Consumer Cyclical · Auto & Truck Dealerships
From Sonic Automotive, Inc.'s most recent 10-K filing, extracted June 11, 2026.
Recent developments
updated 2026-08-16Recent Developments — Sonic Automotive, Inc.
Latest news
- NEWS JP Morgan Maintains Underweight on Sonic Automotive, Lowers Price Target to $72 — benzinga Aug 4, 2026 negative
- NEWS Citigroup Maintains Buy on Sonic Automotive, Raises Price Target to $115 — benzinga Aug 3, 2026 positive
- NEWS Needham Maintains Buy on Sonic Automotive, Raises Price Target to $139 — benzinga Jul 31, 2026 positive
- NEWS Sonic Automotive Q2 Adj. EPS $1.82 Beats $1.74 Estimate, Sales $3.934B Beat $3.772B Estimate — benzinga Jul 30, 2026 positive
- NEWS Ford, Garmin, GE HealthCare, Clean Harbors And Other Big Stocks Moving Higher On Wednesday — benzinga Jul 29, 2026 positive
Generated 2026-08-16T23:17:05Z.
Upcoming dated catalysts
Thesis
Key Metrics
Quality Signals
Options Flow
Concentration Risks(10-K Item 1A)
- HIGHProductFranchised Dealerships Segment85%10-K Item 1: 'Franchised Dealerships Segment revenue represented approximately 85.0% of total revenue'
- MEDIUMGeographicTexas26%10-K Item 1: 'Texas| | 27 | | | 6 | | | 7| | 26.2 | %'
- LOWGeographicCalifornia25%10-K Item 1: 'California| | 23 | | | 1 | | | — | | | 24.6 | %'
Material Events(8-K, last 90d)
- 2026-05-08Item 5.02LOWCompensation Committee approved performance-based RSU grants under the 2026 Equity Incentive Plan to CEO David Bruton Smith (69,872 units), President Jeff Dyke (38,175 units), and CFO Heath R. Byrd (26,183 units), vesting contingent on 2026 adjusted EPS performance.SEC filing →
- 2026-05-01Item 5.02LOWStockholders approved the Sonic Automotive, Inc. 2026 Equity Incentive Plan at the April 29, 2026 annual meeting; plan replaces the 2012 Stock Incentive Plan with 2,318,148 shares reserved for issuance.SEC filing →
Model-generated analysis — not investment advice. Not a registered investment advisor. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
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Rating Breakdown
2 floor-breakers
Volatile — 6.6% daily ATR makes tight stops impractical. Position-size conservatively.static
Quality below the gate floor. Component breakdown shows what dragged the score down.static
Price Targets
Position Sizing
Risk Alerts
Earnings
Verdict History
Frequently Asked Questions
Sell if holding. Engine safety override at $80.83: Quality below floor (2.9 < 4.0) triggers a hard block regardless of the otherwise-positive setup — overall score 5.1/10. Specifically: High short interest: 21%; Elevated put/call ratio: 2.25; Below-average business quality. Chart setup: No clear chart pattern; technical signals are mixed. Prior stop was $76.12. Score 5.1/10, moderate confidence.
Take-profit target: $86.13 (+6.6% upside). Prior stop was $76.12. Stop-loss: $76.12.
Concentration risk — Product: Franchised Dealerships Segment (85.0%); Quality below floor (2.9 < 4.0).
Sonic Automotive, Inc. trades at a P/E of 12.9 (forward 10.6). TrendMatrix value score: 7.9/10. Verdict: Sell.
17 analysts cover SAH with a consensus score of 3.7/5. Average price target: $99.
What does Sonic Automotive, Inc. do?Sonic Automotive operates 111 franchised dealerships (representing 24 brands across 18 states), 18 EchoPark pre-owned...
Sonic Automotive operates 111 franchised dealerships (representing 24 brands across 18 states), 18 EchoPark pre-owned vehicle stores, and 14 powersports stores. Revenue comes from vehicle sales, service, parts, and F&I product commissions; the Franchised Dealerships Segment generated approximately 85.0% of 2025 total revenue.