Nuveen LLC Purchases New Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired 195,049 shares of Group 1 Automotive, valued at approximately $74.5 million, giving them a 1.51% ownership stake in the company.
• Group 1 Automotive reported a 21.4% increase in revenue year-over-year, with earnings per share of $11.52, exceeding analyst expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.4%, set to be paid on September 16th.

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 195,049 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,499,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 1.51% of Group 1 Automotive at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,874 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,476,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at $21,608,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 119.4% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 68 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 840.0% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 423 shares of the company's stock valued at $178,000 after buying an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at $391,000. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on GPI shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $463.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $510.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $485.00 target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $479.43.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of GPI traded down $8.88 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $442.26. The stock had a trading volume of 219,956 shares, compared to its average volume of 165,008. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $336.33 and a 52 week high of $490.09. The company's fifty day moving average is $437.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $429.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.83.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $11.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.31 by $1.21. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.18% and a return on equity of 18.10%. The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.82 EPS. The company's revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.51%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Steven Mizell sold 525 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $417.98, for a total value of $219,439.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 8 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,343.84. This trade represents a 98.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $441.71, for a total transaction of $1,325,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 16,674 shares in the company, valued at $7,365,072.54. This trade represents a 15.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Group 1 Automotive

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.