Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Reduces Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lowered its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) by 31.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,683 shares of the company's stock after selling 761 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp's holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $709,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC raised its position in Group 1 Automotive by 133.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 407,930 shares of the company's stock worth $156,253,000 after acquiring an additional 232,846 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 33.2% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 1,059 shares of the company's stock worth $406,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,328 shares of the company's stock worth $1,275,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $13,117,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter valued at $210,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GPI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $495.00 to $435.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $460.00 price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $450.33.

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Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of Group 1 Automotive stock traded up $7.96 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $380.26. The stock had a trading volume of 284,467 shares, compared to its average volume of 142,018. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1 year low of $262.31 and a 1 year high of $490.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $436.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $414.54.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $10.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.77 by $1.25. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.47% and a return on equity of 18.09%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Group 1 Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Group 1 Automotive's dividend payout ratio is presently 5.44%.

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.