Blume Capital Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Blume Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 55.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 698 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Blume Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $81,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Equity Investment Corp purchased a new position in Genuine Parts during the 4th quarter valued at $84,128,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter worth about $57,407,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in Genuine Parts by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,844,189 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,103,300,000 after buying an additional 401,180 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 1,038.4% during the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 277,802 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $38,803,000 after buying an additional 253,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp boosted its position in Genuine Parts by 95.4% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 391,670 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $54,708,000 after buying an additional 191,272 shares during the period. 78.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

GPC stock opened at $119.24 on Friday. Genuine Parts has a one year low of $112.74 and a one year high of $164.45. The firm has a market cap of $16.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.43 and a beta of 0.93. 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 firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $120.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $125.73.

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

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. This is an increase from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is 63.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GPC. Northcoast Research downgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Genuine Parts from $128.00 to $125.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Loop Capital began coverage on Genuine Parts in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $137.63.

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.