Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP Buys 2,330 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI

Key Points

• Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP significantly increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 96.8%, acquiring an additional 2,330 shares, bringing its total holdings to 4,737 shares valued at approximately $1.81 million.
• Group 1 Automotive announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, with a payout ratio of 5.51%, indicating strong cash flow management.
• The company's quarterly earnings surpassed expectations, reporting an EPS of $11.52, beating the consensus estimate of $10.31, along with a substantial year-over-year revenue increase of 21.4%.

Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 96.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,737 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,330 shares during the quarter. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP's holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $1,809,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Martingale Asset Management L P bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,319,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 230.6% in the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 2,324 shares of the company's stock valued at $883,000 after buying an additional 1,621 shares in the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 265.6% in the first quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 24,710 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,438,000 after buying an additional 17,951 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 130.5% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 99,914 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,162,000 after buying an additional 56,564 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 95,100.0% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 952 shares of the company's stock valued at $364,000 after buying an additional 951 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

NYSE GPI opened at $445.16 on Friday. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1 year low of $336.33 and a 1 year high of $490.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.83. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $438.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $429.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $11.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $5.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $9.82 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. Group 1 Automotive's payout ratio is currently 5.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Group 1 Automotive

In related news, Director Steven Mizell sold 525 shares of the company'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 directly owned 8 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,343.84. This represents a 98.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 3,000 shares of the company'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 owned 16,674 shares in the company, valued at $7,365,072.54. This trade represents a 15.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on GPI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $463.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $479.43.

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.

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