Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) Announces $0.50 Quarterly Dividend

Key Points

• Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, payable on September 16th to stockholders of record by September 2nd, reflecting an annualized yield of 0.5%.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a record of $11.52 earnings per share (EPS), surpassing estimates, along with a revenue of $5.70 billion, marking a 21.4% annual increase.
• Stock analysts generally rate GPI as "Hold," with average target prices suggesting potential growth, although Bank of America has set a bullish price target of $565.

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, August 12th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a dividend of 0.50 per share on Tuesday, September 16th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%.

Group 1 Automotive has a dividend payout ratio of 4.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Group 1 Automotive to earn $44.83 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 4.5%.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 3.3%

Shares of GPI stock traded up $14.18 on Tuesday, reaching $444.10. 174,421 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 167,049. The stock has a market cap of $5.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $435.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $429.53. Group 1 Automotive has a 1-year low of $336.33 and a 1-year high of $490.09.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $11.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.31 by $1.21. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.10% and a net margin of 2.18%. The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.65 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $9.82 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive will post 41 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GPI has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $510.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $463.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $471.57.

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.

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