HighTower Advisors LLC Grows Stake in Genuine Parts Company $GPC

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Genuine Parts Company by 1.5%, totaling approximately 129,788 shares worth $15.46 million.
• Several analysts have recently revised their ratings on Genuine Parts, with JPMorgan Chase upgrading their target from $134 to $145 and Argus giving the stock a "strong-buy" rating.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.03, translating to a 3.0% yield, with a payout ratio of 70.91% expected in the upcoming fiscal year.

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Genuine Parts Company (NYSE:GPC - Free Report) by 1.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 129,788 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 1,916 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC owned about 0.09% of Genuine Parts worth $15,463,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. boosted its stake in Genuine Parts by 2.8% during the first quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 3,376 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $402,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. now owns 2,420 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH lifted its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 20,862 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,486,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Veracity Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 2,147 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 2,647 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $309,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GPC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Argus upgraded Genuine Parts to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Genuine Parts from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Genuine Parts from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Genuine Parts from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 26th. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Genuine Parts from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $135.29.

Genuine Parts Stock Down 0.6%

NYSE GPC traded down $0.81 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $136.18. 223,064 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,394,560. The company has a 50 day moving average of $127.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $123.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Genuine Parts Company has a 52-week low of $104.01 and a 52-week high of $144.49. The firm has a market cap of $18.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.44 and a beta of 0.75.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.02. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 22.41% and a net margin of 3.40%.The company had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.44 EPS. Genuine Parts's revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. Genuine Parts has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.500-8.000 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Genuine Parts Company will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Genuine Parts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Genuine Parts's dividend payout ratio is presently 70.91%.

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.