Victory Capital Management Inc. Acquires 2,616 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 8.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,298 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,616 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.26% of Group 1 Automotive worth $13,521,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $563,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the first quarter worth about $1,037,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 1st quarter worth about $204,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 62,681 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,317,000 after purchasing an additional 1,467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 1st quarter valued at about $887,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Down 0.2 %

GPI opened at $401.26 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.69 and a beta of 1.33. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a one year low of $255.73 and a one year high of $422.28. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $373.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $340.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.24.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly 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. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 2.68%. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $12.07 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.52 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 5.01%.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 12th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 9.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GPI has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens initiated 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 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $397.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was 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 owns 6,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. This represents a 1.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.