Hantz Financial Services Inc. Grows Stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 22.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 6,571 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,196 shares during the quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $2,770,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 35.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $492,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Group 1 Automotive by 4.9% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 4,248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,263,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its position in Group 1 Automotive by 80.1% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 9,168 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,725,000 after acquiring an additional 4,077 shares during the period. Creative Planning boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 55.3% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,873 shares of the company’s stock worth $854,000 after acquiring an additional 1,023 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 48.4% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,079 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,105,000 after acquiring an additional 2,308 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on GPI. StockNews.com raised Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $460.00 target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $425.00 to $420.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $447.83.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 2.8 %

GPI stock opened at $461.82 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.31 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.24. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $255.73 and a 1-year high of $471.28. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $430.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $385.78.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $10.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.77 by $1.25. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 18.49%. Research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.41%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.01%.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Group 1 Automotive news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total transaction of $29,546.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,259 shares in the company, valued at $2,340,928.59. This trade represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $426.68, for a total transaction of $2,560,080.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 98,467 shares in the company, valued at $42,013,899.56. This represents a 5.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Group 1 Automotive Company Profile

Group 1 Automotive, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates in the automotive retail industry in the United States and the United Kingdom. The company sells new and used cars, light trucks, and vehicle parts, as well as service and insurance contracts; arranges related vehicle financing; and offers automotive maintenance and repair services.