Group 1 Automotive Q3 Profit Declines, But Results Beat View

(RTTNews) - Group 1 Automotive, Inc (GPI) reported a 15.5 percent decline in profit for the third quarter from last year despite higher revenues. However, both revenue and adjusted earnings per share beat analysts' expectations.

The company's third-quarter net income was $29.9 million of $1.43 per share, down from $35.37 million or $1.65 per share in the year-ago period

The latest quarter's results include approximately $16.8 million of net, after-tax adjustments, or $0.80 per share, for non-core items.

These adjustments primarily consist of costs directly associated with Hurricane Harvey of approximately $9.0 million after-tax, or $0.44 per share; and, franchise right impairments of $5.9 million after-tax, or $0.28 per share.

Excluding these, adjusted earnings per share for the quarter were $2.23, compared to $1.96 per share in the prior-year quarter.

Total revenue for the quarter increased 6.7 percent to $3.01 billion from $2.82 billion in the prior-year quarter.

On average, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $1.76 per share on revenues of $2.8 billion. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.