Brokerages Set Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) Price Target at $476.57

Key Points

• Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has received a consensus rating of "Hold" from nine analysts, with an average target price of $476.57.
• Directors of the company, including Lincoln Pereira and Steven Mizell, recently sold shares amounting to significant transactions, indicating a 7.78% and a 98.50% decrease in their respective share ownership.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, yielding 0.4%, following a strong quarterly earnings report that exceeded analysts' expectations.

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the nine research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $476.5714.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on GPI. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $470.00 to $485.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Zacks Research lowered Group 1 Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $560.00 to $545.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

NYSE GPI traded up $5.29 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $456.89. The stock had a trading volume of 64,091 shares, compared to its average volume of 165,656. Group 1 Automotive has a 52-week low of $344.38 and a 52-week high of $490.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $446.00 and a 200 day moving average of $429.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market cap of $5.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.86.

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

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 2nd. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Group 1 Automotive news, Director Steven Mizell sold 525 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.98, for a total transaction of $219,439.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,343.84. This represents a 98.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 7,000 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.34, for a total value of $3,285,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 82,967 shares in the company, valued at $38,939,731.78. This represents a 7.78% 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 company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 2.2% in the second quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,077 shares of the company's stock worth $470,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,022 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC raised its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 563 shares of the company's stock valued at $246,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 25.8% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 122 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 471 shares of the company's stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

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.