By Christiana Sciaudone
Investing.com -- AutoNation (NYSE:AN) traded up almost 2% after getting an upgrade and a handful of price target increases.
Benchmark bumped the stock to buy from hold, while firms from Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) to Truist boosted the price target, despite shares already almost tripling over the past 12 months.
Benchmark analyst Michael Ward sees more upside for the company amid an acceleration in demand for vehicles, strong pricing and cost improvement, StreetInsider reported.
"The industry recovered at a faster than expected pace following the shutdown, and production hasn't been able to keep up with demand, limiting inventory addition," Ward wrote in a note.
The analyst expects positive trends to continue into 2022.
Shares of the dealer are trading close to a record hit earlier this week as the company reported profit and sales that blew estimates out of the water.