Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $144.07, but opened at $155.88. Genuine Parts shares last traded at $158.22, with a volume of 599,456 shares.

The specialty retailer reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $5.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.84 billion. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 31.64% and a net margin of 5.70%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.14 EPS.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is 42.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Genuine Parts from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of Genuine Parts in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $167.00 target price on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Genuine Parts has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,250 shares of Genuine Parts stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.92, for a total value of $503,490.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,397 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,230,383.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Genuine Parts

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 2.9% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,088,101 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,153,442,000 after purchasing an additional 481,039 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Genuine Parts by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,189,643 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,209,476,000 after acquiring an additional 171,000 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,860,574 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $612,531,000 after purchasing an additional 185,529 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 1.3% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,977,671 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $497,089,000 after purchasing an additional 36,774 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Imprint Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 16,507.5% during the second quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 2,611,194 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $261,119,000 after purchasing an additional 2,595,471 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Trading Up 10.6 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $149.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.09. The company has a market cap of $22.21 billion, a PE ratio of 16.86 and a beta of 0.94.

About Genuine Parts

Genuine Parts Company distributes automotive replacement parts, and industrial parts and materials. It operates in two segments: Automotive Parts Group and Industrial Parts Group segments. The company distributes automotive replacement parts for hybrid and electric vehicles, trucks, SUVs, buses, motorcycles, recreational vehicles, farm vehicles, small engines, farm equipment, marine equipment, and heavy duty equipment; and equipment and parts used by repair shops, service stations, fleet operators, automobile and truck dealers, leasing companies, bus and truck lines, mass merchandisers, farms, and individuals.