# Sonic Automotive Inc. (SAH) fundamentals

Data as of 2026-09-08. NYSE, United States. Sector: Consumer Cyclical / Automobiles. Price $81.00, market value $2.6 billion.

## Valuation
- **P/E (trailing): 12.9×** (5-yr avg 12.9×, 3-yr avg 12.8×). Sonic Automotive Inc. trades at 12.9× trailing earnings, close to its own five-year average of 12.9×. The Consumer Cyclical median in the September 2026 study was 19.5×. Forward P/E is 10.6×, lower than trailing, so analysts expect earnings to grow.
- **Price / sales: 0.2×**. Each dollar of revenue is priced at 0.2×, a low multiple typical of thin-margin businesses or out-of-favour stocks.
- **Price / book: 2.5×**. The shares trade at 2.5× book value; book value is a meaningful part of the valuation.
- **EV / EBITDA: 6.2×**. Enterprise value is 6.2× operating earnings before depreciation, the multiple that ignores how the company is financed; below 8× is inexpensive for most sectors.
- **Free-cash-flow yield: -10.9%** (5-yr avg 3.0%). Free cash flow is negative: the business is consuming cash, which is normal for heavy investment phases but a warning otherwise.
- **Earnings yield: 7.8%**. The inverse of the P/E: 7.8% of the price is earned each year.

## Profitability
- **Gross margin: 15.7%**. Sonic Automotive Inc. keeps 15.7% of revenue after the direct cost of what it sells, a thin margin typical of retail, distribution and commodity businesses.
- **Operating margin: 3.3%**. 3.3% of revenue is left after running the business, which leaves little cushion in a downturn.
- **Net margin: 0.8%**. 0.8% of each dollar of sales reaches the bottom line.
- **Return on equity: 11.1%**. 11.1% on shareholders' equity is solid.
- **Return on invested capital: 15.1%**. Return on all capital, debt included, is 15.1%: comfortably above what that capital costs.
- **Return on assets: 3.5%**. Each dollar of assets produces 3.5% of profit.

## Growth
- **Revenue growth (1 yr): 6.5%** (3-yr 2.7%/yr, 5-yr 9.2%/yr). Revenue grew 6.5% over the last year, against 9.2% a year compounded over five years: growth is slowing.
- **EPS growth (1 yr): -44.7%** (3-yr 15.3%/yr). Earnings per share fell 44.7%, slower than revenue, so margins compressed.
- **Free-cash-flow growth (3 yr): 32.6%/yr**. Free cash flow has compounded at 32.6% a year over three years, keeping pace with earnings: the growth is real cash.

## Financial health
- **Debt to equity: 1.51**. Debt is 1.51 times equity, a leveraged balance sheet that needs steady cash flow to service.
- **Net debt / EBITDA: 2.4×**. It would take 2.4 years of operating earnings to repay net borrowings, within the comfortable range.
- **Piotroski F-score: 6/9**. 6 of 9 checks pass: mixed.

## Dividends
- **Dividend yield: 2.02%** ($1.55 per share, trailing). Sonic Automotive Inc. yields 2.02%, a modest yield more typical of a growth-oriented payer.
- **Payout ratio: 41%**. 41% of earnings goes out as dividends, leaving room to keep raising it.
- **Consecutive years of increases: 16**. 16 straight years of increases, a record that survived at least one recession.
- **Dividend growth (5 yr): 29.6%/yr** (1-yr 16.8%). The dividend has compounded at 29.6% a year over five years, doubling roughly every 2 years at that pace.

## Price and momentum
- **Total return (1 yr): -0.4%** (YTD 32.4%, 3-mo -0.9%). The shares are down 0.4% over twelve months including dividends.
- **From 52-week high: -28.7%** (49.7% above the low). Trading 29% below its 52-week high.
- **200-day average: above**. The price sits above its 200-day moving average, the usual definition of an uptrend.
- **RSI (14-day): 48**. An RSI of 48 is neutral.
- **Beta (1 yr): 0.80** (volatility 43%). Beta of 0.80 against the S&P 500: the shares move roughly with the market.

Live score and charts: https://foliofundamentals.com/analyzer?s=SAH · Page: https://foliofundamentals.com/stocks/sah

Not investment advice.