Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda Makes New Investment in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $241,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Creative Planning boosted its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 3,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,464,000 after purchasing an additional 949 shares in the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 23.5% during the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 7,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,814,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 42.0% during the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 4,058 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,554,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Group 1 Automotive by 87.6% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 741 shares of the company’s stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 346 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,235,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Group 1 Automotive

In related news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total transaction of $421,188.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 9,742 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,419,344.58. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI opened at $366.44 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 8.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.32. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $363.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $323.37. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $228.84 and a twelve month high of $393.93.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $9.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.36 by $0.44. The business had revenue of $4.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.68 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 3.03% and a return on equity of 20.53%. The company’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $11.73 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 39.39 EPS for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 2nd were given a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 4.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on GPI. Bank of America decreased their price target on Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $360.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Group 1 Automotive has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $396.80.

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.