Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Sells 203 Shares of Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI)

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC reduced its position in Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) by 9.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,969 shares of the company’s stock after selling 203 shares during the quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Group 1 Automotive were worth $754,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 22.0% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 639,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,004,000 after acquiring an additional 115,143 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 18.1% in the second quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 108,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,255,000 after purchasing an additional 16,600 shares during the last quarter. Shellback Capital LP raised its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 27.1% in the second quarter. Shellback Capital LP now owns 95,302 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,331,000 after purchasing an additional 20,302 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Group 1 Automotive by 57.4% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 63,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,222,000 after purchasing an additional 23,051 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 46,483 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,805,000 after buying an additional 5,942 shares during the last quarter. 99.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Edward Mckissic sold 79 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.01, for a total transaction of $29,546.79. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,340,928.59. This represents a 1.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Group 1 Automotive Stock Performance

GPI stock opened at $432.45 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $5.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.51 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.24. Group 1 Automotive, Inc. has a 1 year low of $255.73 and a 1 year high of $440.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $378.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $343.82.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $9.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.87 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.06 billion. Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 2.68%. Group 1 Automotive’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $12.07 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Group 1 Automotive, Inc. will post 38.37 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Group 1 Automotive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.43%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on GPI. Morgan Stanley raised Group 1 Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $285.00 to $430.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Guggenheim upped their target price on 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 upgraded shares of Group 1 Automotive from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $394.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Group 1 Automotive has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $425.20.

About Group 1 Automotive

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.