Group 1 Automotive, Inc. Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.55 (NYSE:GPI)

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of 0.55 per share on Monday, June 15th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st.

Group 1 Automotive has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.3%per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 2 years. Group 1 Automotive has a dividend payout ratio of 5.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Group 1 Automotive to earn $47.67 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 4.6%.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

NYSE GPI traded down $3.10 on Wednesday, hitting $333.04. 87,429 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 174,255. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $330.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $366.37. The company has a market cap of $3.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Group 1 Automotive has a 1-year low of $292.44 and a 1-year high of $488.39.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $8.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.82 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $5.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.42 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.46% and a return on equity of 16.63%. The company’s revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $10.17 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive will post 42.28 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 366,770.5% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 25,431,464 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,002,195,000 after purchasing an additional 25,424,532 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at about $98,125,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at about $75,315,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 968.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 84,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,931,000 after acquiring an additional 76,514 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 34.8% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 226,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $99,278,000 after acquiring an additional 58,641 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Group 1 Automotive

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.