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

Core Insights - Group 1 Automotive (GPI) reported a fourth-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $8.49, a decrease of 15.3% year over year from $10.02, and missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $9.36 [1] - The company registered net sales of $5.58 billion, slightly up from $5.50 billion in the same quarter last year, but below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.66 billion [1] GPI's Q4 Highlights - New vehicle retail sales fell 3.2% year over year to $2.77 billion, missing projections of $2.87 billion, with total retail new vehicles sold at 55,035 units, down 5% year over year [2] - The average selling price per new vehicle increased by 3.3% year over year to $52,776, while gross profit from new vehicle retail was $181.3 million, down 11.6% year over year [2] Used-Vehicle Sales Performance - Used-vehicle retail sales rose 5.2% year over year to $1.74 billion, surpassing forecasts of $1.67 billion, with total retail used vehicles sold at 55,474 units, a slight increase of 0.2% year over year [3] - The average selling price per used vehicle was $31,407, up 5.1% year over year, but gross profit from this segment decreased by 9.4% to $71.8 million [3] Wholesale and Parts & Service Performance - Used-vehicle wholesale sales increased by 11.4% year over year to $143.6 million, although it missed expectations of $149.4 million, with a gross loss of $2.7 million compared to a loss of $1.7 million in the previous year [4] - Parts and Service revenues rose 2.9% year over year to $700.2 million, with gross profit increasing by 6.3% to $394.2 million [4] Segment Performance - U.S. business segment revenues increased by 0.4% year over year to $4.25 billion, exceeding forecasts of $4.11 billion, but gross profit fell by 0.7% to $691.2 million, missing predictions of $707.9 million [5] - The U.K. business segment saw revenues jump 1.4% year over year to $1.33 billion, missing estimates of $1.52 billion, with gross profit slightly declining by 0.1% to $183.2 million [6] Financial Position - Selling, general and administrative expenses rose by 2.1% year over year to $627.3 million, while cash and cash equivalents decreased to $32.5 million from $34.4 million a year earlier [7] - Total debt increased to $3.70 billion as of December 31, 2025, up from $2.91 billion a year prior [7] Share Repurchase Activity - During the quarter, GPI repurchased 755,792 shares at an average price of $403.60 per share, totaling $305 million, with $378.7 million remaining on its authorized stock buyback program as of December 31, 2025 [8]