Palisade Capital Management LP Makes New $3.34 Million Investment in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI

Palisade Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 11,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,343,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in GPI. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the third quarter worth about $55,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter worth about $57,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 78.5% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 191 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 2nd quarter valued at about $75,000. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GPI. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $365.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Seaport Research Partners set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Monday, August 3rd. DA Davidson set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $300.00 target price (down from $400.00) on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Group 1 Automotive from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $320.00 in a report on Friday, July 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $392.44.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 2.0%

NYSE GPI opened at $264.62 on Wednesday. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $249.54 and a 12 month high of $488.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $295.34 and a 200-day moving average of $316.80. The company has a market cap of $3.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.02, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.82.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $9.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.60 by ($0.99). The firm had revenue of $5.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.66 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 15.66% and a net margin of 1.31%.The business’s revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $10.82 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is 9.16%.

Group 1 Automotive Profile

Group 1 Automotive, Inc (NYSE: GPI) is an international automotive retailer headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company operates an extensive network of franchised dealerships, offering new and pre-owned vehicles from leading domestic and import manufacturers. In addition to vehicle sales, Group 1 Automotive provides a full complement of aftersales services, including finance and insurance products, parts distribution, collision repair centers and vehicle maintenance.

Founded in 1997, Group 1 Automotive has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish a presence across the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil.