Stifel Financial Corp Boosts Position in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Free Report) by 21.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,502,852 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 445,259 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned about 1.80% of Genuine Parts worth $292,233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in Genuine Parts in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 78.83% of the company's stock.

Genuine Parts Trading Down 0.4 %

GPC stock traded down $0.47 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $116.62. 1,171,405 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,245,835. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.02 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 1.16. The business has a 50 day moving average of $118.98 and a 200-day moving average of $120.72. Genuine Parts has a 52-week low of $104.01 and a 52-week high of $162.14.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Get Free Report) last posted 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. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 25.28%. The business had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.83 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Genuine Parts's payout ratio is 67.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GPC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Genuine Parts from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Northcoast Research downgraded Genuine Parts from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com cut shares of Genuine Parts from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. 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, Loop Capital began coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $130.86.

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.