MML Investors Services LLC Has $2.42 Million Stock Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 7.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,328 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 437 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $2,424,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of GPI. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Group 1 Automotive by 22.0% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 639,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,004,000 after buying an additional 115,143 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 541,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,518,000 after purchasing an additional 10,969 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 133.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 407,930 shares of the company’s stock valued at $156,253,000 after purchasing an additional 232,846 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 1.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 152,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,576,000 after purchasing an additional 1,735 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 18.1% in the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

GPI stock opened at $427.10 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $392.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $355.37. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $255.73 and a fifty-two week high of $440.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38 and a beta of 1.35.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.87 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 2.68%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $12.07 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.37 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 9.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.01%.

Insider Transactions at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total value of $29,546.79. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,340,928.59. This represents a 1.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GPI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $437.67.

Group 1 Automotive 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.