Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 888 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 157,515 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 888 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $66,389,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in GPI. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 2.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 541,766 shares of the company’s stock valued at $207,518,000 after buying an additional 10,969 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 396,401 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,075,000 after acquiring an additional 9,587 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 0.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 305,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $117,080,000 after purchasing an additional 1,985 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 111.1% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 161,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,949,000 after purchasing an additional 84,832 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,721,000. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI opened at $372.55 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $4.93 billion, a PE ratio of 10.14 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s fifty day moving average is $437.95 and its 200 day moving average is $413.95. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $262.31 and a 52 week high of $490.09.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $10.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.77 by $1.25. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.09% and a net margin of 2.47%. Research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. This is an increase from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is presently 5.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price target for the company. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $460.00 target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $495.00 to $435.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $450.33.

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.