Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Reaches New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday after Guggenheim raised their price target on the stock from $420.00 to $442.00. Guggenheim currently has a buy rating on the stock. Group 1 Automotive traded as high as $422.92 and last traded at $420.76, with a volume of 37689 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $408.66.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Stephens initiated coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley raised Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $425.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the company’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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,340,928.59. This represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Group 1 Automotive

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 82 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 53.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the second quarter worth approximately $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

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 company has a market cap of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.22 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $377.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $342.27.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.06 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 18.49%. Group 1 Automotive’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $12.07 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.37 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.01%.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Group 1 Automotive

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.