Victory Capital Management Inc. Purchases 5,440 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 15.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 40,078 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,440 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.31% of Group 1 Automotive worth $15,308,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 54.0% in the 1st 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 during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 157,515 shares of the company's stock worth $66,389,000 after buying an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 181.3% during the fourth quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP now owns 21,321 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,986,000 after acquiring an additional 13,742 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 315.5% during 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 increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 95.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 237 shares of the company's stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Group 1 Automotive

In other Group 1 Automotive news, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $441.71, for a total value of $1,325,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 16,674 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,365,072.54. The trade was a 15.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,613 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $405.57, for a total transaction of $654,184.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 8,260 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,350,008.20. This trade represents a 16.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 5.1%

NYSE:GPI traded up $21.28 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $437.34. 267,137 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 168,327. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a one year low of $326.91 and a one year high of $490.09. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $438.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $431.13.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $11.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.31 by $1.21. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 17.96%. The company had revenue of $5.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.82 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on GPI shares. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $415.00 target price (down previously from $435.00) on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $463.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $470.14.

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.