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

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $441.25.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on GPI shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $460.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Barclays lifted their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $455.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $385.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Benchmark raised Group 1 Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $425.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GPI. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 7,766 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,966,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 20.3% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 37,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,143,000 after acquiring an additional 6,239 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the 1st quarter valued at about $229,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 41,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,993,000 after acquiring an additional 2,452 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 46.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,753 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,202,000 after acquiring an additional 877 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of GPI opened at $331.64 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $331.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $360.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.87. Group 1 Automotive has a 1-year low of $292.44 and a 1-year high of $488.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $8.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.82 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $5.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.42 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 1.46%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $10.17 EPS. Analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive will post 42.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 8.40%.

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.