Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Major Shareholder Buys $16,439,823.04 in Stock

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) major shareholder Conifer Management, L.L.C. acquired 68,648 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $239.48 per share, for a total transaction of $16,439,823.04. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 1,840,698 shares in the company, valued at approximately $440,810,357.04. The trade was a 3.87% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Conifer Management, L.L.C. also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, September 28th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. bought 133,472 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $243.58 per share, with a total value of $32,511,109.76.
• On Wednesday, September 30th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. purchased 71,592 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The shares were purchased at an average price of $242.03 per share, for a total transaction of $17,327,411.76.
• On Friday, September 25th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. purchased 50,532 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The shares were acquired at an average price of $252.06 per share, for a total transaction of $12,737,095.92.
• On Thursday, September 24th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. acquired 75,756 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $248.00 per share, with a total value of $18,787,488.00.
• On Friday, September 18th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. bought 37,650 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The shares were acquired at an average price of $249.88 per share, for a total transaction of $9,407,982.00.
• On Thursday, September 17th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. acquired 28,000 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The shares were bought at an average price of $266.06 per share, with a total value of $7,449,680.00.
• On Thursday, September 10th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. acquired 36,647 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The stock was bought at an average cost of $280.86 per share, for a total transaction of $10,292,676.42.
• On Wednesday, September 9th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. bought 47,353 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $282.48 per share, for a total transaction of $13,376,275.44.
• On Friday, September 4th, Conifer Management, L.L.C. bought 57,159 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $300.15 per share, with a total value of $17,156,273.85.
• On Thursday, September 3rd, Conifer Management, L.L.C. bought 83,121 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $282.63 per share, with a total value of $23,492,488.23.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

NYSE GPI opened at $249.81 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 10.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $271.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $304.61. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $234.05 and a 52 week high of $461.27.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $9.61 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.60 by ($0.99). The firm had revenue of $5.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.66 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 15.66%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $10.82 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.16%.

Institutional Trading of Group 1 Automotive

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 78.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 191 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 112.0% during the 2nd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 212 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 178.0% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 228 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 2nd quarter worth $75,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GPI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup decreased their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $387.00 to $357.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. UBS Group decreased their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $338.00 to $330.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective (down from $400.00) on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings cut Group 1 Automotive from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $365.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $360.25.

Group 1 Automotive Company Profile

Group 1 Automotive, Inc is an international automotive retailer that operates franchised automobile dealerships. The company sells new and used vehicles from a range of manufacturers and provides related automotive services, including vehicle maintenance and repairs, parts and accessories, financing, and insurance products.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Houston, Texas, Group 1 Automotive serves customers through dealership operations in the United States and the United Kingdom, as well as other international markets.