Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Shares Gap Down - Should You Sell?

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $458.81, but opened at $440.00. Group 1 Automotive shares last traded at $445.53, with a volume of 37,034 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GPI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $425.00 to $420.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Group 1 Automotive from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $500.00 target price for the company. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $436.83.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Down 2.7 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $428.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $384.80. The company has a market cap of $5.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 1.36.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $10.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.77 by $1.25. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 18.49%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Group 1 Automotive's payout ratio is 5.01%.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 6,000 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $426.68, for a total value of $2,560,080.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 98,467 shares in the company, valued at $42,013,899.56. This trade represents a 5.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 1.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 35.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,654 shares of the company's stock valued at $492,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 4.9% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 4,248 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,263,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 139.4% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,540 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,131,000 after purchasing an additional 7,885 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 80.1% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 9,168 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,725,000 after acquiring an additional 4,077 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning grew its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 55.3% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,873 shares of the company's stock valued at $854,000 after buying an additional 1,023 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company's stock.

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.

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