Morningstar Investment Services LLC Reduces Stock Position in Genuine Parts Company (NYSE:GPC)

Morningstar Investment Services LLC trimmed its stake in Genuine Parts Company (NYSE:GPC - Free Report) by 55.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,656 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 16,048 shares during the quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC's holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $1,508,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of GPC. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 7,512 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $877,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP grew its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 14,500 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,693,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp grew its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 21,967 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,565,000 after purchasing an additional 3,069 shares in the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter worth about $1,911,000. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 58,596 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $6,842,000 after purchasing an additional 1,354 shares in the last quarter. 78.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Genuine Parts Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of Genuine Parts stock traded down $0.71 on Friday, reaching $122.82. The company had a trading volume of 1,460,565 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,293,006. The firm has a market cap of $17.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $124.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $120.63. Genuine Parts Company has a 1 year low of $104.01 and a 1 year high of $149.22.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.83 billion. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 23.71% and a net margin of 3.60%. As a group, research analysts predict that Genuine Parts Company will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. Genuine Parts's payout ratio is currently 67.65%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Genuine Parts from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 26th. Argus upgraded Genuine Parts to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Genuine Parts from $133.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "sell" rating and set a $114.00 price target (down from $133.00) on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Genuine Parts from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Genuine Parts has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $130.86.

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.