Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $144.07, but opened at $155.88. Genuine Parts shares last traded at $158.22, with a volume of 599,456 shares.

The specialty retailer reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $5.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.84 billion. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 5.70% and a return on equity of 31.64%. The firm’s revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.14 EPS.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GPC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Genuine Parts from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $167.00 price objective on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Genuine Parts has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.33.

Insider Transactions at Genuine Parts

In related news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.92, for a total transaction of $503,490.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 14,397 shares in the company, valued at $2,230,383.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Genuine Parts

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Amalgamated Bank grew its holdings in Genuine Parts by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 41,734 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,026,000 after buying an additional 4,047 shares in the last quarter. Conning Inc. boosted its stake in Genuine Parts by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 227,942 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,501,000 after buying an additional 12,634 shares during the last quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,593,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Genuine Parts by 15.1% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 141,483 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $20,427,000 after purchasing an additional 18,522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 26.2% in the 4th quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 240,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $33,309,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.23. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $149.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $142.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.86 and a beta of 0.94.

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.