Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) saw a significant drop in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,370,000 shares, a drop of 12.7% from the January 15th total of 1,570,000 shares. Currently, 10.7% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 134,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 10.2 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $426.68, for a total transaction of $2,560,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 98,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,013,899.56. This trade represents a 5.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 571 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 51.9% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 82 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 152 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 119.4% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 68 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 346 shares of the company’s stock worth $146,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GPI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $460.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $460.33.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

GPI stock traded down $2.71 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $478.60. The company had a trading volume of 92,978 shares, compared to its average volume of 132,532. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $6.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.02 and a beta of 1.36. Group 1 Automotive has a one year low of $258.77 and a one year high of $490.09. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $440.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $398.79.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $10.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.77 by $1.25. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.25% and a net margin of 2.47%. Research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive will post 40.86 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is currently 5.12%.

About Group 1 Automotive

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.