De Lisle Partners LLP Makes New Investment in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

De Lisle Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 15,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,901,000. Group 1 Automotive makes up 1.0% of De Lisle Partners LLP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. De Lisle Partners LLP owned approximately 0.12% of Group 1 Automotive at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 133.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 407,930 shares of the company's stock valued at $156,253,000 after acquiring an additional 232,846 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 22.0% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 639,142 shares of the company's stock valued at $190,004,000 after acquiring an additional 115,143 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 596.3% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 76,384 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,259,000 after acquiring an additional 65,414 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 57.4% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 63,236 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,222,000 after purchasing an additional 23,051 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Shellback Capital LP increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 27.1% during the second quarter. Shellback Capital LP now owns 95,302 shares of the company's stock worth $28,331,000 after acquiring an additional 20,302 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GPI shares. Guggenheim raised their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Stephens started coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $394.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley raised Group 1 Automotive from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Group 1 Automotive from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $425.20.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of GPI traded down $4.20 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $427.76. 68,349 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 135,671. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52-week low of $255.73 and a 52-week high of $440.32. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $380.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $345.33. The firm has a market cap of $5.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.40 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.87 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 2.68%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $12.07 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.01%.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 9.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Group 1 Automotive

In related news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total value of $29,546.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. This trade represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Group 1 Automotive Company Profile

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.