Stevens Capital Management LP Sells 2,698 Shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Stevens Capital Management LP trimmed its position in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 23.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,866 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 2,698 shares during the quarter. Stevens Capital Management LP’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $1,228,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 14,397 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,230,383.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Genuine Parts Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GPC traded down $1.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $159.93. 1,003,680 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,068,926. The company has a market capitalization of $22.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.85 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company’s 50-day moving average is $151.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $142.76.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The specialty retailer reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.07. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 30.92% and a net margin of 5.46%. The business had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.84 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.14 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Genuine Parts will post 9.89 EPS for the current fiscal 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 $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.59%.

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.