Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Stock Holdings Lifted by River Road Asset Management LLC

River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 26.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 230,193 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,987 shares during the quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC owned about 0.17% of Genuine Parts worth $26,877,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GPC. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,844,189 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,103,300,000 after buying an additional 401,180 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,296,965 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $458,947,000 after acquiring an additional 32,858 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,889,930 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $337,428,000 after acquiring an additional 145,960 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in Genuine Parts by 1.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,057,593 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $287,405,000 after buying an additional 25,015 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Genuine Parts by 6.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,840,807 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $257,124,000 after buying an additional 114,180 shares during the last quarter. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Genuine Parts Price Performance

GPC opened at $129.20 on Tuesday. Genuine Parts has a 52 week low of $112.74 and a 52 week high of $164.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.97 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 1.16. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $120.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $125.89.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $5.77 billion during 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.26 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate 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 given a $1.03 dividend. This is a boost from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is currently 63.68%.

Insider Activity 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,698.46. The trade was a 12.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GPC. Redburn Atlantic raised Genuine Parts to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Northcoast Research cut shares of Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Loop Capital began coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Eight 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $137.63.

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.