Empirical Finance LLC Has $660,000 Stake in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Empirical Finance LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 6.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,775 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 344 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $660,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GPC. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 109.1% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 184 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. WD Rutherford LLC bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Union Savings Bank raised its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 740.7% during the 1st quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 227 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $150.00 to $148.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $166.00 to $162.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $161.14.

Genuine Parts Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:GPC opened at $143.25 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $19.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.97 and a beta of 0.92. Genuine Parts has a 12 month low of $126.35 and a 12 month high of $164.45. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $139.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $146.22.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.59 by ($0.15). Genuine Parts had a net margin of 5.24% and a return on equity of 30.03%. The company had revenue of $5.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.44 earnings per share. Genuine Parts’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Genuine Parts will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.59%.

Genuine Parts 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.