Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) Receives $458.00 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $458.00.

Several research firms recently commented on GPI. Evercore initiated coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America started coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Group 1 Automotive from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $370.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in Group 1 Automotive by 6.1% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 471 shares of the company’s stock valued at $206,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 54.9% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 79 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 1.0% during the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 2,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,246,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 595 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 935 shares of the company’s stock worth $399,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GPI opened at $299.95 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. Group 1 Automotive has a 52 week low of $297.31 and a 52 week high of $488.39. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $353.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $398.21. The firm has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.99, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This is an increase from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.80%.

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.