Norges Bank Invests $70.56 Million in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 161,574 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $70,561,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GPI. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 23.8% in the first quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 13,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,322,000 after purchasing an additional 2,678 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 28.0% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,126 shares of the company’s stock worth $430,000 after buying an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $437,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Cynosure Group LLC raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 159.5% during the 1st quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 1,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $668,000 after acquiring an additional 1,075 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 180,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,973,000 after acquiring an additional 3,277 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on GPI shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $560.00 to $545.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Zacks Research cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Barclays began coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $510.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Monday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $478.88.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of GPI opened at $408.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market cap of $5.16 billion, a PE ratio of 14.29, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $412.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $433.19. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $355.91 and a twelve month high of $490.09.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $10.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.64 by ($0.19). Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 1.67%.The business had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $9.90 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.00%.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 10.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Group 1 Automotive

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.