Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Cuts Stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lessened its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 9.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,667 shares of the company’s stock after selling 460 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $1,422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in GPI. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 44.3% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 176 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 37.4% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 1,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $397,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,231 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, Procyon Advisors LLC raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 1,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GPI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $200.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $315.00 to $310.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded Group 1 Automotive from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $305.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $330.83.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 2,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.61, for a total value of $754,519.57. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 22,430 shares in the company, valued at $6,944,552.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 2,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.61, for a total value of $754,519.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 22,430 shares in the company, valued at $6,944,552.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.63, for a total value of $412,482.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 11,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,398,557.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,007 shares of company stock worth $1,221,218. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI opened at $298.26 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $300.47 and a 200 day moving average of $286.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $4.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.37. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $228.84 and a 12 month high of $323.95.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $9.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.52 by ($0.03). Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 22.45%. The firm had revenue of $4.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is currently 4.44%.

Group 1 Automotive 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.