Saxon Interests Inc. Buys Shares of 818 Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Saxon Interests Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $249,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 159.6% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 54.6% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Amundi acquired a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on GPI shares. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Group 1 Automotive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $200.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Group 1 Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 1st.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

NYSE GPI traded up $1.69 on Thursday, reaching $292.30. 151,077 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 137,703. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $270.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $272.26. The firm has a market cap of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.42. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $211.26 and a fifty-two week high of $310.08.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The company reported $9.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.44 by ($0.94). The company had revenue of $4.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.41 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 24.36% and a net margin of 3.34%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $10.86 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. This is a positive change from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 4.41%.

Group 1 Automotive Company 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.