600 Shares in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) Acquired by Madison Asset Management LLC

Madison Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 600 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $229,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 54.0% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,574 shares of the company's stock valued at $983,000 after buying an additional 903 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 157,515 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,389,000 after purchasing an additional 888 shares during the period. Cinctive Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 181.3% in the fourth quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP now owns 21,321 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,986,000 after purchasing an additional 13,742 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 315.5% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,720 shares of the company's stock valued at $657,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 95.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 237 shares of the company's stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 transaction of $654,184.41. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 8,260 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,350,008.20. This represents a 16.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $441.71, for a total transaction of $1,325,130.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 16,674 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,365,072.54. The trade was 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 currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GPI. Guggenheim lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $510.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $415.00 price target (down from $435.00) on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Citigroup boosted their price target 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, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $470.14.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 5.1%

NYSE:GPI traded up $21.28 on Friday, hitting $437.34. The stock had a trading volume of 267,137 shares, compared to its average volume of 184,734. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market cap of $5.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.06, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $438.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $431.13. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $326.91 and a 1-year high of $490.09.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $11.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 net margin of 2.18% and a return on equity of 18.34%. The business's revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $9.82 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.61%.

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.