Bailard Inc. Trims Holdings in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Bailard Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 13.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,300 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $396,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 159.6% in the 3rd 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 acquired a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in Group 1 Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $84,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Down 0.0 %

GPI stock opened at $300.35 on Friday. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a one year low of $214.25 and a one year high of $310.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.09, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $273.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $275.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The company reported $9.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.44 by ($0.94). Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 3.23% and a return on equity of 22.82%. The business had revenue of $4.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $10.86 EPS. Group 1 Automotive’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 39.37 EPS 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 issued a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. This is an increase from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is presently 4.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Group 1 Automotive 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.