Geode Capital Management LLC Increases Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 0.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 305,602 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,985 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.29% of Group 1 Automotive worth $117,080,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 244.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 56,319 shares of the company's stock worth $21,573,000 after buying an additional 39,982 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 264 shares of the company's stock worth $101,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 6,328 shares of the company's stock worth $2,424,000 after buying an additional 437 shares during the last quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 21,960 shares of the company's stock worth $8,412,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 4,975 shares of the company's stock worth $1,906,000 after buying an additional 937 shares during the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total value of $29,546.79. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,259 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. This represents a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $426.68, for a total transaction of $2,560,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 98,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,013,899.56. The trade was a 5.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim boosted 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. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $394.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $437.67.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

GPI stock traded down $10.47 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $411.01. 231,478 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 134,460. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $395.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $356.99. 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, Inc. has a 52 week low of $255.73 and a 52 week high of $440.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.47 billion, a PE ratio of 10.95 and a beta of 1.35.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.87 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.06 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 18.49%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $12.07 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.37 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Group 1 Automotive's payout ratio is currently 5.01%.

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.