Stack Financial Management Inc Buys New Shares in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Stack Financial Management Inc bought a new position in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 89,676 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $12,420,000. Stack Financial Management Inc owned 0.06% of Genuine Parts at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of GPC. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts during the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Genuine Parts news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.92, for a total transaction of $503,490.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,397 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,230,383.24. The transaction 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.

Genuine Parts Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of GPC stock traded down $0.93 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $160.14. 284,914 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,059,737. Genuine Parts has a fifty-two week low of $126.35 and a fifty-two week high of $174.91. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $151.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $22.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.96 and a beta of 0.94.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The specialty retailer reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.84 billion. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 30.92% and a net margin of 5.46%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.14 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Genuine Parts will post 9.89 EPS for the current year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $1.00 dividend. This is a boost from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on GPC. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $170.00 target price (up from $140.00) on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $167.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $173.10.

Genuine Parts Company Profile

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.