Norges Bank Purchases New Holdings in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. $GPI

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 249,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $98,125,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,842,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 54.4% during the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,139 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,774,000 after acquiring an additional 4,276 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 97.1% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 6,409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,521,000 after acquiring an additional 3,157 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 178.0% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1,001.6% during the 4th quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 12,779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,026,000 after acquiring an additional 11,619 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Up 2.0%

GPI opened at $311.66 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $331.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $356.63. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $292.44 and a twelve month high of $488.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.90, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.81.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $8.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.82 by ($0.16). Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 1.46% and a return on equity of 16.63%. The company had revenue of $5.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $10.17 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 42.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 8.40%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $460.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $455.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Benchmark raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $425.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $385.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $441.25.

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.