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

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $327.00 and last traded at $327.5620, with a volume of 34912 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $333.86.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on GPI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $410.00 to $370.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, January 9th. Evercore began coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $460.00 price target on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $466.57.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Down 1.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.19 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $387.04 and a 200-day moving average of $415.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $8.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.36 by ($0.87). Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.44% and a return on equity of 17.00%. The company had revenue of $5.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $10.02 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.00%.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, November 11th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 10.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 366,770.5% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 25,431,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,002,195,000 after purchasing an additional 25,424,532 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 678,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,788,000 after buying an additional 25,209 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 505,108 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,659,000 after acquiring an additional 7,418 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the fourth quarter valued at about $98,125,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 34.8% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 226,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,278,000 after acquiring an additional 58,641 shares during the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Company 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.