Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Shares Sold by Sigma Planning Corp

Sigma Planning Corp cut its stake in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 55.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,617 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,991 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $224,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GPC. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Genuine Parts

In other Genuine Parts news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now directly owns 14,397 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,230,383.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

Shares of Genuine Parts stock opened at $159.93 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $152.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.83 and a beta of 0.94. Genuine Parts has a 12 month low of $126.35 and a 12 month 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.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The specialty retailer reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.78 billion for 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 quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.14 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Genuine Parts will post 9.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $1.00 dividend. This is a boost from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is currently 44.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.