Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $343.00.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GPI. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th.

Insider Activity

In other Group 1 Automotive news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total value of $421,188.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 9,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,344.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Group 1 Automotive news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total value of $421,188.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 9,742 shares in the company, valued at $3,419,344.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Edward Mckissic sold 170 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.92, for a total value of $54,216.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,082 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,939,671.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Group 1 Automotive

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 22.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 639,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,004,000 after purchasing an additional 115,143 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter worth about $46,923,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 150,754 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,941,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Woodson Capital Management LP raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 114.6% in the first quarter. Woodson Capital Management LP now owns 142,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,643,000 after buying an additional 76,102 shares during the period. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 18.1% in the second quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 108,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,255,000 after buying an additional 16,600 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 0.1 %

GPI opened at $355.21 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $317.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $296.19. The firm has a market cap of $4.81 billion, a PE ratio of 8.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.35. Group 1 Automotive has a twelve month low of $228.84 and a twelve month high of $373.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $9.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.36 by $0.44. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 20.53% and a net margin of 3.03%. The business had revenue of $4.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $11.73 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive will post 38.28 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.44%.

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.