Quadrature Capital Ltd cut its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 63.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,724 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,826 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd's holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $1,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of GPI. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 22.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 639,142 shares of the company's stock valued at $190,004,000 after purchasing an additional 115,143 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 133.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 407,930 shares of the company's stock worth $156,253,000 after purchasing an additional 232,846 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 152,923 shares of the company's stock worth $58,576,000 after purchasing an additional 1,735 shares in the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 18.1% during the second quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 108,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,255,000 after purchasing an additional 16,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Shellback Capital LP lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 27.1% during the 2nd quarter. Shellback Capital LP now owns 95,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,331,000 after buying an additional 20,302 shares in the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
In other Group 1 Automotive news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total value of $29,546.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,259 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,340,928.59. This trade represents a 1.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Shares of GPI stock opened at $430.49 on Friday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $387.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $350.90. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $255.73 and a 52 week high of $440.32. The stock has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.47 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.
Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $9.87 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 2.68%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $12.07 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.01%.
Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Group 1 Automotive from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Group 1 Automotive from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $394.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $425.20.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on 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.
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