Farther Finance Advisors LLC Sells 284 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Farther Finance Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 19.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,147 shares of the company’s stock after selling 284 shares during the quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 2.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 156,627 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,701,000 after acquiring an additional 3,507 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Group 1 Automotive by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 154,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,297,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at $295,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the third quarter valued at $3,286,000. Finally, Haven Private LLC bought a new position in Group 1 Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at $258,000. Institutional investors own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on GPI. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. 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 report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $420.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $460.00 price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $460.33.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of Group 1 Automotive stock opened at $387.26 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.24. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1 year low of $262.31 and a 1 year high of $490.09. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $448.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $411.26. The stock has a market cap of $5.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.54 and a beta of 1.33.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $10.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.77 by $1.25. Group 1 Automotive had a net margin of 2.47% and a return on equity of 18.09%. As a group, research analysts expect that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Group 1 Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. This is a positive change from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 5.44%.

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.