JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) Price Target to $420.00

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) had its price objective cut by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $425.00 to $420.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective points to a potential downside of 6.22% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on GPI. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. StockNews.com raised Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $436.83.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $447.84 on Friday. Group 1 Automotive has a 12 month low of $255.73 and a 12 month high of $449.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a PE ratio of 11.93 and a beta of 1.36. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $422.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $376.26.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.87 by $0.03. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 2.68%. The firm had revenue of $5.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $12.07 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Group 1 Automotive will post 38.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 9.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Group 1 Automotive

In other news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total value of $29,546.79. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. The trade was a 1.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 6,000 shares of Group 1 Automotive stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $426.68, for a total transaction of $2,560,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 98,467 shares in the company, valued at $42,013,899.56. This trade represents a 5.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Group 1 Automotive

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GPI. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 51.9% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 82 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter worth approximately $46,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 70.4% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 121 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 17.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. 99.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.