Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Shares Sold by Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its position in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 12.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,800 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $794,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPC. Royce & Associates LP lifted its position in Genuine Parts by 8.7% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 12,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,746,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Genuine Parts by 16.4% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 121,103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $16,916,000 after buying an additional 17,026 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Genuine Parts by 2.5% in the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,028 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $842,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Genuine Parts in the third quarter valued at about $202,000. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its holdings in Genuine Parts by 36.3% in the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 3,732 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $522,000 after buying an additional 993 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GPC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. 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 target price for the company. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Northcoast Research cut shares of Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $137.63.

Genuine Parts Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of GPC opened at $124.72 on Thursday. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $120.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $125.03. Genuine Parts has a 1-year low of $112.74 and a 1-year high of $164.45. The stock has a market cap of $17.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.28 and a beta of 0.93.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty retailer reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.77 billion during 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 earned $2.26 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 EPS 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 paid a $1.03 dividend. This is a boost from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is presently 63.68%.

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.