Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Shares Sold by First Horizon Advisors Inc.

First Horizon Advisors Inc. lowered its position in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 35.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,630 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,956 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $424,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPC. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,844,189 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,103,300,000 after purchasing an additional 401,180 shares in the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 1,038.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 277,802 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $38,803,000 after purchasing an additional 253,400 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 95.4% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 391,670 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $54,708,000 after purchasing an additional 191,272 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 70.4% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 363,907 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,831,000 after purchasing an additional 150,356 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 40.3% in the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 501,802 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $58,590,000 after purchasing an additional 144,091 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of GPC opened at $122.19 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $16.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.89 and a beta of 0.94. Genuine Parts has a 12-month low of $112.74 and a 12-month high of $164.45. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $118.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty retailer reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.71 billion. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 25.28%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.26 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.03 dividend. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is 63.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on GPC shares. Loop Capital started coverage on Genuine Parts in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 price objective on the stock. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Genuine Parts to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Northcoast Research lowered Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Genuine Parts from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $137.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Genuine Parts

In other Genuine Parts news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 1,608 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.78, for a total transaction of $194,214.24. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,357 shares in the company, valued at $1,371,698.46. This represents a 12.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 corporate insiders.

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.