Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 10.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 55,895 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 6,565 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $6,526,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Genuine Parts in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc acquired a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

Genuine Parts stock opened at $116.80 on Friday. Genuine Parts has a fifty-two week low of $112.74 and a fifty-two week high of $164.45. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $121.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $123.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The company has a market cap of $16.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.05 and a beta of 0.93.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty retailer reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.07. The firm 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 previous year, the company posted $2.26 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 EPS for the current year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $1.03 dividend. This is an increase from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on GPC shares. Northcoast Research cut Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI raised shares of Genuine Parts from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $128.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $114.00 target price (down from $133.00) on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Genuine Parts currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $135.88.

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.