Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI Shares Sold by Voya Investment Management LLC

Voya Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 31.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,786 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,278 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $1,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Keybank National Association OH acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the second quarter worth $335,000. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 2.7% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 25,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,209,000 after purchasing an additional 681 shares during the period. Advent International L.P. boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 15.3% during the 1st quarter. Advent International L.P. now owns 235,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,833,000 after acquiring an additional 31,244 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the first quarter worth $1,932,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 133.8% in the second quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 2,974 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,299,000 after purchasing an additional 1,702 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of GPI stock opened at $399.74 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.25. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a one year low of $355.91 and a one year high of $490.09. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $403.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $430.57. The company has a market capitalization of $5.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.99 and a beta of 0.90.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $10.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.64 by ($0.19). Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 1.67%.The business had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.90 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 11th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 10.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 7.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GPI. Barclays initiated coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $510.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Morgan Stanley set a $460.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $472.29.

Group 1 Automotive Profile

Group 1 Automotive, Inc (NYSE: GPI) is an international automotive retailer headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company operates an extensive network of franchised dealerships, offering new and pre-owned vehicles from leading domestic and import manufacturers. In addition to vehicle sales, Group 1 Automotive provides a full complement of aftersales services, including finance and insurance products, parts distribution, collision repair centers and vehicle maintenance.

Founded in 1997, Group 1 Automotive has grown through both organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish a presence across the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil.