Palisade Capital Management LP Invests $3.34 Million in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI

Palisade Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 11,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,343,000. Palisade Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.10% of Group 1 Automotive at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of GPI. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at $5,167,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the fourth quarter worth $98,125,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1,001.6% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 12,779 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,026,000 after buying an additional 11,619 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 51.6% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 78,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,064,000 after buying an additional 26,822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the first quarter worth about $5,049,000. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

NYSE:GPI opened at $264.62 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $3.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.82. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $249.54 and a 12 month high of $488.39. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $295.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $316.80.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced 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 the consensus estimate of $5.66 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 15.66% and a net margin of 1.31%.Group 1 Automotive’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $10.82 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is presently 9.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GPI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners set a $420.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $338.00 to $330.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $365.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Evercore set a $360.00 price target on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $392.44.

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.