BNP Paribas Financial Markets Reduces Holdings in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lowered its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 2.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 13,375 shares of the company’s stock after selling 391 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $5,123,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 51.9% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 82 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter worth $36,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 53.7% in the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the third quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the second quarter valued at $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of GPI opened at $432.56 on Wednesday. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $255.73 and a fifty-two week high of $440.32. The company’s fifty day moving average is $384.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $348.64. The firm has a market cap of $5.76 billion, a PE ratio of 11.53 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.87 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 2.68%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $12.07 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 9.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.01%.

Insider Activity at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total value of $29,546.79. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. This trade represents a 1.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GPI. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com raised Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $425.20.

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.