New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 1,100 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its holdings in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 5.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,337 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,100 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.15% of Group 1 Automotive worth $7,386,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 571 shares of the company's stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 24.8% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 146 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 1.2% during the first quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 2,718 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,038,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 119.4% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 68 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 346 shares of the company's stock valued at $146,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE GPI opened at $466.09 on Friday. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $279.86 and a 1-year high of $490.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $432.53 and a 200-day moving average of $428.99. The firm has a market cap of $6.03 billion, a PE ratio of 13.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.90.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $10.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.68 by $0.49. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 17.96% and a net margin of 2.27%. The company had revenue of $5.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $9.49 EPS. Group 1 Automotive's revenue was up 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.43%. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio is presently 5.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on GPI. Benchmark began coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Guggenheim cut Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen cut Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $510.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $495.00 to $435.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Group 1 Automotive presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $473.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Group 1 Automotive news, 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 transaction, the vice president owned 8,260 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,350,008.20. This represents a 16.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 value of $1,325,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 16,674 shares in the company, valued at $7,365,072.54. This trade represents a 15.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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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