Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI Position Boosted by Brevan Howard Capital Management LP

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP increased its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 177.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,986 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,384 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP owned 0.08% of Group 1 Automotive worth $4,369,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. MAI Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 131.3% in the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 74 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter worth $131,000. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of GPI opened at $300.01 on Monday. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $298.21 and a 12 month high of $488.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $355.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $399.46. The company has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.00, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.91.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $8.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.36 by ($0.87). Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.44% and a return on equity of 17.39%. The company had revenue of $5.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $10.02 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 8.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Barclays set a $470.00 price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Evercore started coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $458.00.

Group 1 Automotive 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.