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

Stevens Capital Management LP trimmed its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 23.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the 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 SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of GPC. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the third quarter worth $25,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new position in Genuine Parts in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Genuine Parts in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Genuine Parts

In related news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,250 shares of Genuine Parts stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.92, for a total value 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Genuine Parts stock traded down $1.14 on Friday, hitting $159.93. The stock had a trading volume of 1,003,680 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,068,926. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $151.44 and a 200 day moving average of $142.76. The firm 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 twelve month low of $126.35 and a twelve month high of $174.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.84 billion. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 5.46% and a return on equity of 30.92%. The company’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.14 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Genuine Parts will post 9.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This is an increase from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is presently 44.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $167.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Genuine Parts from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective (up from $140.00) on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Friday, April 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price 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, April 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $173.10.

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.