Quest Partners LLC Has $2 Million Stock Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Quest Partners LLC grew its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 12.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,717 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 742 shares during the quarter. Quest Partners LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Group 1 Automotive worth $1,997,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 53.7% during the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. USA Financial Formulas boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 1,616.7% during the fourth quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 206 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 37.4% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 47.5% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 270 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Michael David Jones sold 1,200 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.99, for a total value of $421,188.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,742 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,419,344.58. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on GPI shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $445.00 to $435.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $343.00.

Group 1 Automotive Price Performance

Shares of GPI opened at $358.78 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.81 billion, a PE ratio of 8.47, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $334.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $305.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 1.02. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $228.84 and a twelve month high of $379.45.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported $9.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.36 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $4.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $11.73 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 39.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 2nd will be given a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is 4.44%.

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.