UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Purchases New Holdings in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,035 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $887,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,203,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 14.0% in the first quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 91,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,856,000 after buying an additional 11,300 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 30,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,400,000 after buying an additional 5,472 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 15.2% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 22,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,498,000 after buying an additional 2,927 shares during the period. Finally, PAX Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the first quarter valued at approximately $650,000. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 170 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.92, for a total value of $54,216.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,939,671.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Group 1 Automotive news, 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 11,535 shares in the company, valued at $3,398,557.05. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Edward Mckissic sold 170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.92, for a total transaction of $54,216.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 6,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,939,671.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,007 shares of company stock worth $1,221,218 over the last ninety days. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $315.00 to $310.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Guggenheim upgraded Group 1 Automotive from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $305.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $329.17.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Down 0.2 %

Group 1 Automotive stock traded down $0.71 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $325.00. The stock had a trading volume of 8,600 shares, compared to its average volume of 133,915. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $228.84 and a 12 month high of $338.00. The company has a market capitalization of $4.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.69, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $303.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $286.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $9.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.36 by $0.44. The business had revenue of $4.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.68 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 22.45% and a net margin of 3.23%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $11.73 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.44%.

Group 1 Automotive Company 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.