Public Sector Pension Investment Board Sells 1,300 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Public Sector Pension Investment Board lowered its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 4.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,751 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,300 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned approximately 0.21% of Group 1 Automotive worth $10,630,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,275,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,901,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 33.2% in the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 1,059 shares of the company’s stock valued at $406,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Cynosure Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at about $367,000. Finally, Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,011,000. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were 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 directly owns 6,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. This trade represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of GPI stock opened at $427.76 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.40 and a beta of 1.33. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $380.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $345.33. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $255.73 and a 52 week high of $440.32.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.87 by $0.03. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 18.49%. The firm had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $12.07 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GPI has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Stephens began 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 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $425.20.

Group 1 Automotive 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.