Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) Receives $437.67 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $437.67.

Several research firms recently issued reports on GPI. StockNews.com raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $500.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $447.29 on Monday. Group 1 Automotive has a 12-month low of $255.73 and a 12-month high of $449.56. The company has a market capitalization of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.92 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. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $421.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $374.14.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $12.07 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive will post 38.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 12th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.01%.

Insider Activity at Group 1 Automotive

In related news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 6,000 shares of the company’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. This trade represents a 5.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GPI. Assetmark Inc. grew 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 purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter worth about $46,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the 2nd quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 70.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 121 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

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.