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

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

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $330.00 price objective on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded Group 1 Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Group 1 Automotive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $200.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPI traded up $1.69 during trading on Thursday, hitting $292.30. 151,077 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 137,703. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The business’s fifty day moving average is $270.62 and its 200-day moving average is $272.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.85, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.42. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a one year low of $211.26 and a one year high of $310.08.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The company reported $9.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.44 by ($0.94). The company had revenue of $4.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.41 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 24.36% and a net margin of 3.34%. Group 1 Automotive’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $10.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.87 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.47 per share. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. This is a positive change from Group 1 Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Group 1 Automotive’s payout ratio is presently 4.41%.

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.