Raymond James & Associates Increases Holdings in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 46,483 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,942 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $17,805,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of GPI. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Group 1 Automotive by 22.0% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 639,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $190,004,000 after acquiring an additional 115,143 shares in the last quarter. Woodson Capital Management LP raised its position in Group 1 Automotive by 114.6% during the first quarter. Woodson Capital Management LP now owns 142,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,643,000 after acquiring an additional 76,102 shares in the last quarter. Shellback Capital LP grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 27.1% in the second quarter. Shellback Capital LP now owns 95,302 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,331,000 after purchasing an additional 20,302 shares during the period. Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 18.1% in 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 during the period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 227.2% in the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 23,856 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,971,000 after purchasing an additional 16,566 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total transaction of $421,188.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,344.58. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on GPI shares. StockNews.com raised Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley raised Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens started coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $360.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Group 1 Automotive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $396.80.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI opened at $346.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $364.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $327.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a PE ratio of 8.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.32. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1 year low of $239.01 and a 1 year high of $393.93.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $9.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.36 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $4.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.68 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 20.53% and a net margin of 3.03%. The business’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $11.73 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 4.64%.

Group 1 Automotive Profile

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.