Brokerages Set Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) PT at $473.25

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eleven ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $473.25.

A number of research firms have issued reports on GPI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI started coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $510.00 to $490.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, January 9th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GPI. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 54.9% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 79 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 131.3% during the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 74 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 881.8% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 108 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the second quarter valued at $43,000. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 1.8%

GPI opened at $397.59 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $402.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $422.91. The firm has a market cap of $5.02 billion, a PE ratio of 13.91 and a beta of 0.89. Group 1 Automotive has a twelve month low of $355.91 and a twelve month high of $490.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $10.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.64 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.67 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 18.08%. Group 1 Automotive’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $9.90 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive will post 41 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.00%.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 11th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 10.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About Group 1 Automotive

Group 1 Automotive, Inc (NYSE: GPI) is an international automotive retailer headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company operates an extensive network of franchised dealerships, offering new and pre-owned vehicles from leading domestic and import manufacturers. In addition to vehicle sales, Group 1 Automotive provides a full complement of aftersales services, including finance and insurance products, parts distribution, collision repair centers and vehicle maintenance.

Founded in 1997, Group 1 Automotive has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish a presence across the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil.