Seaport Res Ptn Issues Negative Forecast for GPI Earnings

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) – Research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn reduced their Q4 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report released on Thursday, November 21st. Seaport Res Ptn analyst G. Chin now forecasts that the company will post earnings per share of $9.22 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $9.25. The consensus estimate for Group 1 Automotive’s current full-year earnings is $38.37 per share.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report 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 target for the stock from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $425.20.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 3.0 %

NYSE GPI opened at $433.74 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 1.33. Group 1 Automotive has a 52 week low of $255.73 and a 52 week high of $440.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $377.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $342.90.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.87 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $12.07 earnings per share.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 12th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the 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 sale, the vice president now owns 6,259 shares in the company, valued at $2,340,928.59. This represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 51.9% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 82 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in Group 1 Automotive by 0.9% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 3,832 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,139,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 17.1% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 264 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 2,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $848,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Company 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.