Farther Finance Advisors LLC Buys 1,252 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 699.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,431 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,252 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC's holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $548,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. US Bancorp DE increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 2.9% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,996 shares of the company's stock worth $765,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at about $106,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 57.4% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 63,236 shares of the company's stock worth $24,222,000 after buying an additional 23,051 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 14.7% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 46,483 shares of the company's stock worth $17,805,000 after buying an additional 5,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 43.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 388 shares of the company's stock valued at $149,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Down 1.1 %

Group 1 Automotive stock traded down $4.59 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $402.79. 135,859 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 135,090. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $255.73 and a fifty-two week high of $413.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.73, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.33. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $366.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $333.42.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $9.87 by $0.03. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 2.68%. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $12.07 earnings per share. Group 1 Automotive's revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total value of $421,188.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 9,742 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,419,344.58. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total value of $421,188.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 9,742 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,419,344.58. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,259 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GPI. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $394.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded Group 1 Automotive from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised Group 1 Automotive from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $397.80.

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.