Short Interest in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Grows By 21.1%

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,640,000 shares, an increase of 21.1% from the August 15th total of 2,180,000 shares. Approximately 1.9% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 960,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Genuine Parts Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE GPC traded up $0.72 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $138.07. 156,390 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 979,869. The company has a market capitalization of $19.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.31 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $139.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $145.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Genuine Parts has a twelve month low of $126.35 and a twelve month high of $164.45.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $5.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.03 billion. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 30.03% and a net margin of 5.24%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.44 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Genuine Parts will post 9.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.90%. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.59%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Genuine Parts

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GPC. WD Rutherford LLC bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Genuine Parts by 109.1% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 184 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Union Savings Bank raised its stake in Genuine Parts by 100.0% during the first quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC increased its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 740.7% in the 1st quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 227 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reduced their target price on Genuine Parts from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Wedbush decreased their target price on Genuine Parts from $170.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 7th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Genuine Parts in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Genuine Parts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $161.14.

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.