Alberta Investment Management Corp Trims Stock Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Alberta Investment Management Corp lowered its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 46.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,500 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,900 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp's holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $1,719,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the 1st quarter valued at about $370,000. De Lisle Partners LLP lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 20,900 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,975,000 after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 28.0% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,126 shares of the company's stock valued at $430,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 23.8% in the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 13,933 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,322,000 after purchasing an additional 2,678 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the first quarter valued at about $905,000. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 3.0%

GPI traded up $12.04 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $419.46. 178,441 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 195,863. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.83. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $334.38 and a 1-year high of $490.09. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $436.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $430.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

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

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.51%.

Insider Transactions at Group 1 Automotive

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on GPI shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. Guggenheim lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America lifted 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 report on Monday, June 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $471.57.

Group 1 Automotive Company 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.