Tectonic Advisors LLC Purchases Shares of 1,238 Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Tectonic Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,238 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $522,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 541,766 shares of the company's stock worth $207,518,000 after acquiring an additional 10,969 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 133.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 407,930 shares of the company's stock valued at $156,253,000 after purchasing an additional 232,846 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 305,602 shares of the company's stock worth $117,080,000 after buying an additional 1,985 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 156,627 shares of the company's stock worth $55,701,000 after buying an additional 3,507 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 152,923 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,576,000 after buying an additional 1,735 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company's stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

GPI stock traded down $1.96 during trading on Friday, hitting $470.28. 204,943 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 133,676. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $434.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $392.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $258.77 and a 52 week high of $489.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.80 and a beta of 1.36.

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 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 18.25%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 40.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. Group 1 Automotive's payout ratio is currently 5.12%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GPI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $425.00 to $420.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $460.00 target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $447.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Group 1 Automotive news, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 6,000 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 98,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,013,899.56. This represents a 5.74 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.