Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Reaches New 52-Week Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on the stock from $410.00 to $370.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Group 1 Automotive traded as low as $331.59 and last traded at $334.74, with a volume of 152747 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $338.40.

GPI has been the topic of a number of other reports. Barclays set a $470.00 target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Evercore started coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $460.00 price objective on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $466.57.

Institutional Trading of Group 1 Automotive

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPI. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter worth $26,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 54.9% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 79 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. MAI Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 131.3% in the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 74 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp lifted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 881.8% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 108 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth $43,000. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.48 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 1.06. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $391.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $416.98.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $8.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.36 by ($0.87). Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 1.44%.The business had revenue of $5.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $10.02 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

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.