Equity Investment Corp Purchases New Stake in Genuine Parts Company $GPC

Equity Investment Corp acquired a new position in shares of Genuine Parts Company (NYSE:GPC) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 974,085 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $114,922,000. Genuine Parts accounts for about 2.2% of Equity Investment Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPC. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the second quarter worth $1,574,910,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the 4th quarter valued at about $293,471,000. Baupost Group LLC MA acquired a new stake in Genuine Parts during the third quarter worth about $193,347,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 7,774.2% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,234,984 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $151,854,000 after acquiring an additional 1,219,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in Genuine Parts in the second quarter worth about $101,240,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on GPC shares. Zacks Research raised Genuine Parts from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 25th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $122.00 price target on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Genuine Parts in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Truist Financial increased their target price on Genuine Parts from $124.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.86.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

Shares of GPC stock opened at $132.06 on Wednesday. Genuine Parts Company has a 12-month low of $90.78 and a 12-month high of $151.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 528.26 and a beta of 0.62. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $122.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $115.28.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The specialty retailer reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.07. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 22.59% and a net margin of 0.13%.The firm had revenue of $6.54 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Genuine Parts has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.000 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Genuine Parts Company will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

Genuine Parts Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a $1.0625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $4.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 1,700.00%.

About Genuine Parts

Genuine Parts Company (NYSE: GPC) is a global distributor of automotive replacement parts, industrial parts and business products with a history dating back to 1928. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company operates a broad distribution network and retail presence serving repair shops, independent retailers, industrial customers and commercial accounts. Its business model centers on stocking and delivering a wide range of parts and supplies to support aftermarket and maintenance needs across multiple end markets.

Genuine Parts conducts its operations through several well-known operating groups and subsidiaries.