JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has Lowered Expectations for Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Stock Price

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) had its target price reduced by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $410.00 to $370.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 10.47% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on GPI. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $460.00 price objective on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Monday, December 8th. Evercore began coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $500.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays set a $470.00 price target on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $466.57.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of Group 1 Automotive stock traded down $3.48 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $334.92. The stock had a trading volume of 89,425 shares, compared to its average volume of 193,830. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $394.11 and its 200 day moving average is $418.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Group 1 Automotive has a twelve month low of $331.59 and a twelve month high of $490.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.23 billion, a PE ratio of 13.39 and a beta of 0.90.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $8.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.36 by ($0.87). The business had revenue of $5.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.71 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 1.44%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $10.02 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, November 11th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 10.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 366,770.5% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 25,431,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,002,195,000 after purchasing an additional 25,424,532 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at about $98,125,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 34.8% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 226,915 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,278,000 after acquiring an additional 58,641 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 22.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 184,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,822,000 after acquiring an additional 33,542 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $75,315,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

About Group 1 Automotive

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.