Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 68,462 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 6.4% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 999,194 shares of the company’s stock after selling 68,462 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.07% of Group 1 Automotive worth $297,039,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at $46,923,000. Woodson Capital Management LP boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 114.6% in the 1st quarter. Woodson Capital Management LP now owns 142,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,643,000 after buying an additional 76,102 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 18.1% in the 2nd quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 108,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,255,000 after acquiring an additional 16,600 shares in the last quarter. Intrinsic Edge Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 66.4% during the fourth quarter. Intrinsic Edge Capital Management LLC now owns 84,968 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,893,000 after acquiring an additional 33,901 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $21,296,000. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on GPI. StockNews.com cut Group 1 Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $360.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Stephens started coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $367.80.

Insider Activity at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total transaction of $421,188.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 9,742 shares in the company, valued at $3,419,344.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $376.75 on Wednesday. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a one year low of $228.84 and a one year high of $379.45. The company has a market capitalization of $5.10 billion, a PE ratio of 8.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 1.02. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $341.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $308.72.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $9.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.36 by $0.44. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 3.03% and a return on equity of 20.53%. The company had revenue of $4.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $11.73 earnings per share. Group 1 Automotive’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 39.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Monday, September 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 4.44%.

About Group 1 Automotive

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.