Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Raises Stake in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,619 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,549 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $2,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Genuine Parts by 417.6% in the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 156,148 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $21,626,000 after acquiring an additional 125,980 shares during the period. Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its stake in Genuine Parts by 250.8% in the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 3,834 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $531,000 after acquiring an additional 2,741 shares during the period. Telos Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Genuine Parts by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 36,629 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,073,000 after acquiring an additional 2,008 shares during the period. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter worth about $368,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Genuine Parts by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 90,532 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $12,539,000 after acquiring an additional 813 shares during the period. 78.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.92, for a total value of $503,490.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,397 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,230,383.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

GPC opened at $163.09 on Tuesday. Genuine Parts has a 52-week low of $126.35 and a 52-week high of $174.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $22.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.18 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $150.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $142.49.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 18th. The specialty retailer reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.07. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 5.46% and a return on equity of 30.92%. The firm had revenue of $5.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Genuine Parts will post 9.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. This is an increase from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is 44.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GPC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective (up from $140.00) on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Friday. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $167.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Genuine Parts currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $173.10.

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.