Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Acquires Shares of 15,059 Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 15,059 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,347,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Group 1 Automotive at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GPI. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 244.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 56,319 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,573,000 after buying an additional 39,982 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter valued at about $272,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 2.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 156,627 shares of the company's stock worth $55,701,000 after acquiring an additional 3,507 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 70.4% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 121 shares of the company's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Range Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter worth about $416,000. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on GPI. Guggenheim dropped their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $502.00 to $426.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $463.00 target price for the company. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $460.00 price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $495.00 to $435.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $449.86.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI traded up $6.34 on Friday, reaching $411.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 81,214 shares, compared to its average volume of 143,169. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $407.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $418.23. 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 company has a market cap of $5.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 0.94. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52-week low of $279.86 and a 52-week high of $490.09.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $10.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.68 by $0.49. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.09% and a net margin of 2.47%. The company had revenue of $5.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $9.49 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This is a positive change from Group 1 Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio is presently 5.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Group 1 Automotive news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,613 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The stock was 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 now owns 8,260 shares in the company, valued at $3,350,008.20. The trade was a 16.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.