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

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the five analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $396.80.

GPI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised 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. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of 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. StockNews.com cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $360.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Stephens began coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 target price on the stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

GPI stock opened at $353.31 on Friday. Group 1 Automotive has a 12-month low of $228.84 and a 12-month high of $393.93. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $362.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $321.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market cap of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.32.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $9.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.36 by $0.44. The business had revenue of $4.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.68 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 3.03% and a return on equity of 20.53%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $11.73 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive will post 39.18 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Monday, September 2nd were issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total transaction of $421,188.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 9,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,344.58. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 53.7% during 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 period. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the second quarter worth about $48,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 47.5% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 270 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 17.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1,452.8% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,000 after buying an additional 523 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

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.