Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Hits New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

by · The Markets Daily

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPIGet Free Report)’s share price hit a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $272.28 and last traded at $272.7550, with a volume of 50551 shares. The stock had previously closed at $277.60.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on GPI shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Group 1 Automotive from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays decreased their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $470.00 to $435.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, July 10th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $425.00 price target on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, July 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $411.33.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Group 1 Automotive

Group 1 Automotive Trading Down 1.7%

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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $310.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $328.52. The stock has a market cap of $3.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.82.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPIGet Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $9.61 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.60 by ($0.99). The business had revenue of $5.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.66 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 15.66%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $10.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 39.9 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is 9.16%.

Institutional Trading of Group 1 Automotive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 54.9% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 79 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Corp lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 881.8% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 108 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 40.5% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter valued at $55,000. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Company Profile

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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.

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