Burney Co. Has $18.46 Million Stock Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI

Burney Co. lessened its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 42,188 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,331 shares during the period. Burney Co. owned about 0.33% of Group 1 Automotive worth $18,458,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. MAI Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 131.3% during the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 74 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 90.5% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 80 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the second quarter worth $43,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 25.8% in the second quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 1st quarter valued at about $64,000. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GPI shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $560.00 to $545.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays started coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $510.00 price target on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Group 1 Automotive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $472.29.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $408.00 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.28 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $355.91 and a 12 month high of $490.09. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $404.93 and its 200-day moving average is $431.14.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $10.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.64 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.67 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 18.08%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $9.90 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, November 11th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 10.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were given 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 Monday, December 1st. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.00%.

About Group 1 Automotive

Group 1 Automotive, Inc (NYSE: GPI) is an international automotive retailer headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company operates an extensive network of franchised dealerships, offering new and pre-owned vehicles from leading domestic and import manufacturers. In addition to vehicle sales, Group 1 Automotive provides a full complement of aftersales services, including finance and insurance products, parts distribution, collision repair centers and vehicle maintenance.

Founded in 1997, Group 1 Automotive has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish a presence across the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil.