Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) Shares Sold by Gotham Asset Management LLC

Gotham Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 67.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 863 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,798 shares during the quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC's holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $364,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPI. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 26.4% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 515,593 shares of the company's stock valued at $217,312,000 after buying an additional 107,663 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 396,401 shares of the company's stock valued at $167,075,000 after acquiring an additional 9,587 shares in the last quarter. Advent International L.P. raised its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 65.7% in the 4th quarter. Advent International L.P. now owns 203,951 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,961,000 after acquiring an additional 80,870 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 111.1% in the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 161,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,949,000 after acquiring an additional 84,832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 157,970 shares of the company's stock worth $66,581,000 after purchasing an additional 15,280 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GPI shares. Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $460.00 price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on 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 Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $463.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $454.43.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 0.0%

GPI traded up $0.17 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $426.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 98,252 shares, compared to its average volume of 143,732. The stock has a market cap of $5.52 billion, a PE ratio of 11.61 and a beta of 0.94. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $279.86 and a fifty-two week high of $490.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The business's 50-day moving average is $408.43 and its 200-day moving average is $425.83.

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 the consensus estimate of $9.68 by $0.49. The business had revenue of $5.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.37 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.09% and a net margin of 2.47%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $9.49 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,613 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $405.57, for a total value of $654,184.41. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 8,260 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,350,008.20. This represents a 16.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

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.