AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 2,211 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

AQR Capital Management LLC cut its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 18.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,931 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,211 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.07% of Group 1 Automotive worth $4,186,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 157,515 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,389,000 after acquiring an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 74,844 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,653,000 after purchasing an additional 2,405 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 154,923 shares of the company's stock worth $65,297,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 181.3% during the fourth quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP now owns 21,321 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,986,000 after buying an additional 13,742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC bought a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter worth about $295,000. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Group 1 Automotive

In related news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,613 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $405.57, for a total transaction of $654,184.41. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 8,260 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,350,008.20. The trade was a 16.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GPI has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $495.00 to $435.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $463.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $460.00 target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Guggenheim cut their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $502.00 to $426.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $449.86.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

NYSE GPI opened at $430.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $5.56 billion, a PE ratio of 11.71 and a beta of 0.94. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52-week low of $279.86 and a 52-week high of $490.09. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $403.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $420.00.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $10.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $9.68 by $0.49. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.47% and a return on equity of 18.09%. The company had revenue of $5.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $9.49 EPS. Group 1 Automotive's revenue was up 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. This is a positive change from Group 1 Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.61%.

Group 1 Automotive Profile

Group 1 Automotive, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates in the automotive retail industry in the United States and the United Kingdom. The company sells new and used cars, light trucks, and vehicle parts, as well as service and insurance contracts; arranges related vehicle financing; and offers automotive maintenance and repair services.

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