Sawgrass Asset Management LLC Sells 117 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 15.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 634 shares of the company’s stock after selling 117 shares during the period. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $242,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 119.4% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 68 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 24.8% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 59.3% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 188 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $87,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 95.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,613 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $405.57, for a total value of $654,184.41. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 8,260 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,350,008.20. This trade represents a 16.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Daniel James Mchenry sold 3,000 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $441.71, for a total value of $1,325,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,365,072.54. This represents a 15.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on GPI shares. Citigroup raised their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $463.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $495.00 to $435.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $510.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Guggenheim cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Group 1 Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $473.00.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Up 0.7%

GPI opened at $448.69 on Tuesday. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $279.86 and a twelve month high of $490.09. The firm has a market cap of $5.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $423.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $427.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $10.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.68 by $0.49. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 17.96%. The firm had revenue of $5.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $9.49 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.45%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is 5.61%.

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.