Entropy Technologies LP Has $558,000 Stock Holdings in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Entropy Technologies LP lowered its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 49.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,456 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,400 shares during the quarter. Entropy Technologies LP’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $558,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also 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% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 639,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $190,004,000 after buying an additional 115,143 shares in the last quarter. Woodson Capital Management LP grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 114.6% during the 1st quarter. Woodson Capital Management LP now owns 142,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,643,000 after acquiring an additional 76,102 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 16,600 shares in the last quarter. Shellback Capital LP lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 27.1% during the second quarter. Shellback Capital LP now owns 95,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,331,000 after purchasing an additional 20,302 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 57.4% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 63,236 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,222,000 after purchasing an additional 23,051 shares in the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI opened at $414.81 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $371.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $338.39. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $255.73 and a fifty-two week high of $422.28. The company has a market capitalization of $5.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.33. 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 (NYSE:GPI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.87 by $0.03. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 18.49%. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $12.07 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 9.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.45%. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 5.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. The trade was a 1.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on GPI shares. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Stephens assumed coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 price objective for the company. 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 upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $397.80.

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.