2,326 Shares in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Bought by Flputnam Investment Management Co.

Flputnam Investment Management Co. bought a new stake in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,326 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $322,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its holdings in Genuine Parts by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 19,056 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,401,000 after acquiring an additional 1,180 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,740 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $345,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 50,928 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,448,000 after purchasing an additional 4,372 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC lifted its stake in Genuine Parts by 63.1% in the 1st quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 78,951 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $9,949,000 after buying an additional 30,545 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in Genuine Parts by 195.1% during the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 114,328 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $14,408,000 after buying an additional 75,591 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Price Performance

Genuine Parts stock opened at $160.23 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company has a market cap of $22.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.17 and a beta of 0.94. Genuine Parts has a 1 year low of $126.35 and a 1 year high of $174.91. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $149.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.22.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The specialty retailer reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.06. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 31.64% and a net margin of 5.70%. The business had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.14 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Genuine Parts will post 9.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. This is a boost from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is presently 42.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Genuine Parts news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,250 shares of Genuine Parts stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,230,383.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on GPC shares. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $167.00 price target on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Friday, April 12th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI lowered 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 report on Tuesday. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $168.33.

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.