Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Shares Purchased by Arizona State Retirement System

Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 40,465 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 556 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $4,725,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp grew its stake in Genuine Parts by 5.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,844,189 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,103,300,000 after buying an additional 401,180 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Genuine Parts by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,296,965 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $458,947,000 after buying an additional 32,858 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Genuine Parts by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,889,930 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $337,428,000 after buying an additional 145,960 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in Genuine Parts by 1.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,057,593 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $287,405,000 after buying an additional 25,015 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Genuine Parts by 6.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,840,807 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $257,124,000 after buying an additional 114,180 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE GPC opened at $127.41 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $17.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.69 and a beta of 0.93. Genuine Parts has a 12 month low of $112.74 and a 12 month high of $164.45. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $119.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty retailer reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.71 billion. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 25.28%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.26 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. This is a boost 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 63.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 1,608 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.78, for a total value of $194,214.24. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,698.46. This trade represents a 12.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GPC has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Genuine Parts to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Finally, Northcoast Research downgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $137.63.

Genuine Parts 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.