Duality Advisers LP Cuts Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Duality Advisers LP trimmed its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 10.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,533 shares of the company’s stock after selling 799 shares during the quarter. Duality Advisers LP’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $1,991,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 159.6% in the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Group 1 Automotive in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Planned Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, Ronald Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 74.1% in the third quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $325.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $200.00 to $255.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $330.00 price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $305.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $331.67.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GPI opened at $268.65 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.63 billion, a PE ratio of 6.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.42. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $214.25 and a 12 month high of $310.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $271.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $274.03.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The company reported $9.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.44 by ($0.94). Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 24.36% and a net margin of 3.34%. The company had revenue of $4.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $10.86 earnings per share. Group 1 Automotive’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 39.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This is a boost from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 4.41%.

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.