UBS Group AG Sells 12,399 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI

UBS Group AG lowered its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 21.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 44,172 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,399 shares during the period. UBS Group AG’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $17,373,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 66.5% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 4,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,574,000 after buying an additional 1,598 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 881.8% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $217,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $476,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 40.5% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Down 3.4%

NYSE:GPI opened at $336.77 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.95. The company has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 12.86, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.87. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52-week low of $292.44 and a 52-week high of $488.39. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $330.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $366.37.

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

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is 8.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on GPI. Evercore began coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $385.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $462.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Benchmark upgraded Group 1 Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $425.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $456.00.

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.