Prossimo Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Prossimo Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 22.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,291 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 660 shares during the quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $267,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners grew its stake in Genuine Parts by 79.3% during the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 269 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on GPC. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Genuine Parts to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $138.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Loop Capital started coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Northcoast Research downgraded 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 assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.50.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

NYSE:GPC opened at $121.72 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. Genuine Parts has a fifty-two week low of $112.74 and a fifty-two week high of $164.45. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $127.34. The stock has a market cap of $16.92 billion, a PE ratio of 15.67 and a beta of 0.94.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty retailer reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.07. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 4.67% and a return on equity of 27.23%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.26 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Genuine Parts will post 8.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. This is an increase from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is presently 51.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Genuine Parts

In other news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 1,608 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.78, for a total transaction of $194,214.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.