Arosa Capital Management LP Takes Position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Arosa Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 2,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $996,000. Group 1 Automotive accounts for approximately 0.4% of Arosa Capital Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 51.9% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 82 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 0.9% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 3,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,139,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1.7% during the second quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 2,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $848,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 53.7% in the 2nd 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 last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GPI shares. Stephens initiated coverage on Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $442.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $285.00 to $430.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $425.20.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of GPI stock opened at $425.80 on Monday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $5.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.35 and a beta of 1.33. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 12-month low of $255.73 and a 12-month high of $440.32. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $382.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $347.04.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $12.07 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is 5.01%.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, November 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 9.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Group 1 Automotive news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total transaction of $29,546.79. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 6,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. The trade was a 1.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.