Fmr LLC Purchases 232,846 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Fmr LLC grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 133.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 407,930 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 232,846 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $156,253,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of GPI. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 5.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,765,000 after buying an additional 515 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 73.5% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 1,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $436,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares during the period. CX Institutional grew its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 9,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,960,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the second quarter valued at about $452,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Group 1 Automotive

In related news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total transaction of $29,546.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,340,928.59. This trade represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI opened at $432.56 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.00. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $255.73 and a 52 week high of $440.32. The firm has a market cap of $5.76 billion, a PE ratio of 11.53 and a beta of 1.35. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $384.34 and its 200-day moving average is $348.64.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.87 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $5.22 billion for 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $12.07 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 12th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders 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 of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.