Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $8.62 Million Stock Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 93.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 22,556 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,869 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.17% of Group 1 Automotive worth $8,615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 119.4% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 68 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 59.3% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 188 shares of the company's stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the first quarter worth about $87,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 95.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 237 shares of the company's stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter worth about $144,000. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $495.00 to $435.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Guggenheim cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $454.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 16,674 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,365,072.54. This represents a 15.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,613 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $3,350,008.20. This trade represents a 16.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of GPI stock opened at $424.12 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The firm's 50 day moving average is $418.35 and its 200 day moving average is $427.08. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $279.86 and a 12 month high of $490.09.

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

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.61%.

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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