Seaport Res Ptn Issues Pessimistic Estimate for GPI Earnings

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) – Stock analysts at Seaport Res Ptn reduced their FY2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report issued on Tuesday, October 14th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst G. Chin now forecasts that the company will earn $45.96 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $46.71. The consensus estimate for Group 1 Automotive’s current full-year earnings is $41.00 per share.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $470.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $560.00 to $545.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Group 1 Automotive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $478.00.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE GPI opened at $436.04 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $5.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.05. Group 1 Automotive has a 52-week low of $344.38 and a 52-week high of $490.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $451.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $433.32.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $11.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.31 by $1.21. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.10% and a net margin of 2.18%.The firm had revenue of $5.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.65 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.82 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 2nd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is 5.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 7,000 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $469.34, for a total transaction of $3,285,380.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 82,967 shares in the company, valued at $38,939,731.78. This trade represents a 7.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Steven Mizell sold 525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $417.98, for a total transaction of $219,439.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 8 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,343.84. The trade was a 98.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Group 1 Automotive

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 95.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Group 1 Automotive by 315.5% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $657,000 after buying an additional 1,306 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 24.8% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 68.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,799,000 after acquiring an additional 5,091 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.