Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Has $11.29 Million Stake in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its stake in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 15.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 96,699 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 12,610 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $11,291,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 23,768 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,320,000 after acquiring an additional 1,572 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP lifted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 12,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,746,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 160.7% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 25,977 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,628,000 after acquiring an additional 16,013 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 121,103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $16,916,000 after acquiring an additional 17,026 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,028 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $842,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Northcoast Research downgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $137.63.

Genuine Parts Price Performance

Shares of GPC stock opened at $123.98 on Wednesday. Genuine Parts has a 1 year low of $112.74 and a 1 year high of $164.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $120.68 and its 200-day moving average is $125.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.16 and a beta of 0.93. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty retailer reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.07. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 25.28%. The company had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.26 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.32%. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.68%.

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.