Morgan Stanley Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Stock Price

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) had its target price decreased by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $460.00 to $400.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target points to a potential upside of 24.43% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Evercore began coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Friday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Group 1 Automotive from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $370.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, February 20th. Barclays set a $470.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $458.00.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $321.47 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.85 and a beta of 0.91. Group 1 Automotive has a 12-month low of $306.96 and a 12-month high of $488.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $369.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $407.63.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $8.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.36 by ($0.87). The firm had revenue of $5.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.71 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.44% and a return on equity of 17.39%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $10.02 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive will post 41 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 11th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 10.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 2,840.0% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the fourth quarter worth about $612,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 151,578 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,616,000 after buying an additional 7,501 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 1,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $696,000 after buying an additional 128 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 118.8% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 47,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,784,000 after acquiring an additional 25,932 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Company Profile

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.