Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Sets New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $420.00 to $495.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Group 1 Automotive traded as high as $490.09 and last traded at $486.70, with a volume of 13055 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $484.08.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on GPI. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $460.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. StockNews.com raised Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $460.33.

Insider Transactions at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $426.68, for a total transaction of $2,560,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 98,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,013,899.56. The trade was a 5.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 119.4% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 68 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 82 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $437.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $395.74. The stock has a market cap of $6.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.25 and a beta of 1.36.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 2.47%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 40.86 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.12%.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 12th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.