Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Purchases New Holdings in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 100,680 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $11,755,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned 0.07% of Genuine Parts as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in Genuine Parts in the 4th quarter worth approximately $540,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Genuine Parts by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,698,737 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $198,338,000 after acquiring an additional 182,965 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 436.0% in the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 31,451 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $3,672,000 after purchasing an additional 25,583 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter valued at about $21,840,000. Finally, Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,320,000. Institutional investors own 78.83% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Genuine Parts Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:GPC traded down $1.43 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $126.32. 691,302 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,290,263. 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 market capitalization of $17.53 billion, a PE ratio of 19.52 and a beta of 0.76. Genuine Parts has a 12-month low of $104.01 and a 12-month high of $149.22. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $119.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.32.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $5.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.83 billion. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 25.28% and a net margin of 3.85%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 EPS for the current year.

Genuine Parts Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Genuine Parts's payout ratio is currently 67.65%.

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.