Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Stock Rating Lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) was downgraded by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $415.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $435.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 0.85% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on GPI. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $510.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Guggenheim cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Benchmark assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $463.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $470.14.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Up 1.3%

Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $411.51 on Thursday. Group 1 Automotive has a fifty-two week low of $298.92 and a fifty-two week high of $490.09. The stock has a market cap of $5.32 billion, a PE ratio of 11.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $440.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $431.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $10.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.68 by $0.49. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 17.96%. The company had revenue of $5.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $9.49 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive will post 41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Group 1 Automotive

In other Group 1 Automotive news, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 3,000 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $441.71, for a total transaction of $1,325,130.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 16,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,365,072.54. The trade was a 15.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,613 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $405.57, for a total value of $654,184.41. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 8,260 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,350,008.20. This represents a 16.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GPI. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 54.0% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $983,000 after buying an additional 903 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 157,515 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,389,000 after buying an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 74,844 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,653,000 after buying an additional 2,405 shares in the last quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 181.3% in the fourth quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP now owns 21,321 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,986,000 after purchasing an additional 13,742 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 315.5% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $657,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306 shares in the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.