Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 13,300 Shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund decreased its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 29.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 31,740 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 13,300 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $3,706,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the third quarter worth $26,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Genuine Parts during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Genuine Parts news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 1,608 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.78, for a total transaction of $194,214.24. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,371,698.46. The trade was a 12.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GPC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Loop Capital began coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Genuine Parts to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Northcoast Research lowered Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $137.63.

Genuine Parts Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of GPC stock opened at $123.22 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $118.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.78. Genuine Parts has a 1 year low of $112.74 and a 1 year high of $164.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.04 and a beta of 0.94.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty retailer reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.71 billion. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 25.28% and a net margin of 3.85%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.26 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is 63.68%.

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.