Jupiter Topco LLC Makes New $1.38 Million Investment in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI

Key Points

• Jupiter Topco initiated a $1.38 million position in Group 1 Automotive during the second quarter, while several other institutions also established stakes. Institutional investors now own 99.92% of the company.
• Group 1 Automotive’s latest quarterly results fell short of expectations, with EPS of $9.61 versus the $10.60 consensus and revenue down 5.6% year over year to $5.39 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.55 per share, equivalent to $2.20 annually and a 0.7% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $392.44.

Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 4,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,380,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 2nd quarter worth $5,134,000. Palisade Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth about $3,343,000. Lakewood Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth about $72,098,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the second quarter valued at about $8,220,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the second quarter worth about $57,174,000. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Conifer Management, L.L.C. bought 26,561 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $276.03 per share, for a total transaction of $7,331,632.83. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 1,222,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $337,408,030.80. This represents a 2.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Up 6.2%

GPI opened at $301.91 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a PE ratio of 12.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.25. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $249.54 and a fifty-two week high of $488.39. The business has a 50-day moving average of $289.44 and a 200-day moving average of $313.33.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $9.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $10.60 by ($0.99). The firm had revenue of $5.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.66 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 15.66% and a net margin of 1.31%.The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $10.82 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio is currently 9.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $365.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Evercore set a $360.00 price objective on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $338.00 to $330.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 10th. DA Davidson set a $425.00 price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, July 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $392.44.

Group 1 Automotive Profile

Group 1 Automotive, Inc NYSE: GPI is an international automotive retailer headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company operates an extensive network of franchised dealerships, offering new and pre-owned vehicles from leading domestic and import manufacturers. In addition to vehicle sales, Group 1 Automotive provides a full complement of aftersales services, including finance and insurance products, parts distribution, collision repair centers and vehicle maintenance.

Founded in 1997, Group 1 Automotive has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish a presence across the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.