Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Trading Down 10.5% Following Weak Earnings

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)’s stock price traded down 10.5% during trading on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $313.40 and last traded at $320.2540. 38,593 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 182,389 shares. The stock had previously closed at $357.97.

The company reported $9.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.60 by ($0.99). Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 1.46%.The company had revenue of $5.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.66 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $10.82 earnings per share. Group 1 Automotive’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GPI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, June 12th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $470.00 to $435.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $390.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 13th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $462.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $425.00 price objective on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, July 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $426.89.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 366,770.5% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 25,431,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,002,195,000 after purchasing an additional 25,424,532 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the fourth quarter worth about $98,125,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 968.8% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 84,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,931,000 after buying an additional 76,514 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 2,053.8% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 51,972 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,403,000 after buying an additional 49,559 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $17,959,000. 99.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $314.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $332.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of 11.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.83.

Group 1 Automotive Company Profile

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.