Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Raised to Strong-Buy at Evercore ISI

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) was upgraded by investment analysts at Evercore ISI to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $510.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $475.75.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $398.68 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $401.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $425.38. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $5.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.95 and a beta of 0.89. Group 1 Automotive has a 52 week low of $355.91 and a 52 week high of $490.09.

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

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, November 11th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 10.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Keybank National Association OH bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the second quarter worth about $335,000. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 2.7% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 25,668 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,209,000 after buying an additional 681 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 133.8% in the second quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 2,974 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,299,000 after buying an additional 1,702 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 44,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,543,000 after acquiring an additional 1,505 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 778.3% during the 2nd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 5,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,301,000 after acquiring an additional 4,670 shares during the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is 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.