Zacks Research Expects Lower Earnings for Group 1 Automotive

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:GPI) – Zacks Research decreased their FY2025 earnings per share estimates for Group 1 Automotive in a report released on Friday, November 14th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $41.52 for the year, down from their prior estimate of $41.62. Zacks Research currently has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Group 1 Automotive’s current full-year earnings is $41.00 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Group 1 Automotive’s Q4 2025 earnings at $9.38 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $10.97 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $10.46 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $43.82 EPS and Q3 2027 earnings at $13.35 EPS.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Group 1 Automotive from $435.00 to $410.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Group 1 Automotive in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Group 1 Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Group 1 Automotive from $470.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $478.88.

Group 1 Automotive Trading Up 2.6%

NYSE GPI opened at $393.02 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.75, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.91. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $426.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $435.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Group 1 Automotive has a 52 week low of $355.91 and a 52 week high of $490.09.

Group 1 Automotive (NYSE:GPI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The company reported $10.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.64 by ($0.19). Group 1 Automotive had a return on equity of 18.08% and a net margin of 1.67%.The company had revenue of $5.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.67 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.90 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Group 1 Automotive declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 11th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 10.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Group 1 Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Group 1 Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Lincoln Pereira sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.34, for a total value of $3,285,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 82,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,939,731.78. The trade was a 7.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GPI. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Group 1 Automotive during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Elequin Capital LP bought a new stake in Group 1 Automotive during the first quarter valued at $29,000. MAI Capital Management increased its stake in Group 1 Automotive by 131.3% during the second quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 74 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Group 1 Automotive by 90.5% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 80 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Group 1 Automotive in the 2nd quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.92% of the company’s stock.

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.