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Group 1 Automotive's (GPI) Buy (B) Rating Reaffirmed at Weiss Ratings

Group 1 Automotive logo with Retail/Wholesale background

Key Points

  • Group 1 Automotive (GPI) has had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by Weiss Ratings, indicating confidence from analysts about the company's stock performance.
  • Morgan Stanley raised its price objective for GPI from $470 to $485, while five analysts rated the stock as a "Buy" and five as a "Hold," resulting in a consensus target price of $476.57.
  • Group 1 Automotive reported $11.52 EPS for the quarter, surpassing expectations, and saw a 21.4% increase in revenue year-over-year, totaling $5.70 billion.
  • MarketBeat previews the top five stocks to own by November 1st.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy (b)" rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a report released on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $470.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Benchmark began coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Group 1 Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 30th. Zacks Research lowered Group 1 Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective 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. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $476.57.

View Our Latest Stock Report on Group 1 Automotive

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $424.61 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.71, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.85. Group 1 Automotive has a 1 year low of $344.38 and a 1 year high of $490.09. The business has a 50-day moving average of $450.16 and a 200-day moving average of $432.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last posted 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 return on equity of 18.10% and a net margin of 2.18%.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 company earned $9.82 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive will post 41 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Steven Mizell sold 525 shares of the company's 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 sale, the director owned 8 shares in the company, valued at $3,343.84. This represents a 98.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 7,000 shares of the company's 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 sale, the director owned 82,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,939,731.78. This represents a 7.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GPI. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $74,499,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $70,561,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 1,287.8% during the 2nd quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 102,000 shares of the company's stock worth $44,544,000 after purchasing an additional 94,650 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 130.5% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 99,914 shares of the company's stock worth $38,162,000 after purchasing an additional 56,564 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the 2nd quarter valued at $17,959,000. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

About Group 1 Automotive

(Get Free Report)

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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Analyst Recommendations for Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI)

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