Royal Bank of Canada Has $19.57 Million Stock Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Royal Bank of Canada lowered its stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 9.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 46,439 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,920 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned 0.35% of Group 1 Automotive worth $19,573,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 244.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 56,319 shares of the company's stock worth $21,573,000 after purchasing an additional 39,982 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 25.6% in the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 152 shares of the company's stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 64.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 637 shares of the company's stock valued at $268,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 52.1% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 616 shares of the company's stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 943 shares of the company's stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI traded down $0.84 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $422.99. The stock had a trading volume of 10,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 142,862. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $279.86 and a 1-year high of $490.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 0.94. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $409.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $425.96.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last issued 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 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $9.49 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on GPI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $495.00 to $435.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Guggenheim cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $460.00 target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup raised 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $454.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,613 shares of Group 1 Automotive 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 owns 8,260 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,350,008.20. The trade was a 16.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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.