Group 1 Q4 Earnings Miss Estimates, Revenues Increase Y/Y

Group 1 Automotive GPI reported fourth-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $8.49, down 15.3% year over year from $10.02. The figure also missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $9.36. The automotive retailer registered net sales of $5.58 billion, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.66 billion. The top line improved from the year-ago quarter’s $5.50 billion.

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Group 1 Automotive, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Group 1 Automotive, Inc. Quote

GPI’s Q4 Highlights

New vehicle retail sales fell 3.2% from the prior-year quarter’s level to $2.77 billion and missed our projection of $2.87 billion due to fewer-than-expected vehicles sold. Total retail new vehicles sold were 55,035 units, which decreased 5% year over year and missed our forecast of 58,609 units. The average selling price per unit was $52,776, up 3.3% year over year. The gross profit from the new vehicle retail unit totaled $181.3 million, down 11.6% year over year.

Used-vehicle retail sales rose 5.2% from the year-ago period to $1.74 billion and surpassed our forecast of $1.67 billion. Total retail used vehicles sold were 55,474 units, up 0.2% year over year but lagged our expectation of 57,940 units. The average selling price per unit was $31,407, up 5.1% year over year. The gross profit from the unit was $71.8 million, down 9.4% year over year.

Used-vehicle wholesale sales rose 11.4% year over year to $143.6 million but missed our expectation of $149.4 million. The unit incurred a gross loss of $2.7 million compared with a gross loss of $1.7 million in the year-ago period. In the Parts and Service business, the top line rose 2.9% to $700.2 million and gross profit increased 6.3% to $394.2 million year over year. Revenues from the Finance and Insurance business totaled $229.7 million, up 1.9% from the year-ago period’s level.

GPI’s Segments in Detail

In the reported quarter, revenues from the U.S. business segment rose 0.4% year over year to $4.25 billion and topped our forecast of $4.11 billion. The segment’s gross profit fell 0.7% to $691.2 million and missed our prediction of $707.9 million. During the reported quarter, retail new-vehicle, retail used-vehicle and wholesale used-vehicle units sold were 41,777, 37,596 and 9,756, respectively.

In the fourth quarter, revenues jumped 1.4% year over year to $1.33 billion for the U.K. business segment, missing our estimate of $1.52 billion. Gross profit was $183.2 million, which fell 0.1% from the year-ago quarter’s level and missed our projection of $219.9 million. During the reported quarter, the retail new-vehicle, retail used-vehicle and wholesale used-vehicle units sold were 13,258, 17,878 and 5,797, respectively.

GPI’s Financial Position

Selling, general and administrative expenses were up 2.1% year over year to $627.3 million. Group 1 had cash and cash equivalents of $32.5 million as of Dec. 31, 2025, down from $34.4 million as of Dec. 31, 2024. Total debt was $3.70 billion as of Dec. 31, 2025, up from $2.91 billion as of Dec. 31, 2024.

During the quarter under discussion, GPI repurchased 755,792 shares at an average price of $403.60 per common share for a total of $305 million. As of Dec. 31, 2025, the company had $378.7 million remaining on its authorized stock buyback program.

Group 1’s Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks

GPI carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present.

Some other top-ranked stocks in the auto space are Ford Motor F, REV Group REVG and PHINIA Inc. PHIN, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for F’s 2025 sales implies year-over-year growth of 0.3%. EPS estimate for 2025 and 2026 has improved 2 cents each in the past seven days.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for REVG’s fiscal 2026 sales and earnings implies year-over-year growth of 8.1% and 37.8%, respectively. EPS estimate for fiscal 2026 and 2027 has improved 20 cents and 26 cents, respectively, in the past 60 days.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for PHIN’s 2025 sales and earnings implies year-over-year growth of 1.1% and 33.4%, respectively. The EPS estimate for 2025 has moved north 47 cents in the past 60 days and the same for 2026 has improved 52 cents in the past 30 days.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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