Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Purchases 2,308 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 48.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,079 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,308 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned about 0.05% of Group 1 Automotive worth $2,105,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 0.9% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 3,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,139,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 17.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 2,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 53.7% during 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, Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 7.9% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 1,040 shares of the company’s stock valued at $309,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on GPI shares. StockNews.com cut Group 1 Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $360.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Stephens initiated coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $396.80.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Up 1.4 %

Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $368.87 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $361.99 and a 200-day moving average of $319.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $228.84 and a twelve month high of $393.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.99 billion, a PE ratio of 8.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.32.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $9.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.36 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $4.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.68 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 20.53% and a net margin of 3.03%. The company’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $11.73 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 39.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 4.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total value of $421,188.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 9,742 shares in the company, valued at $3,419,344.58. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

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.