Birch Capital Management LLC Sells 6,150 Shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Birch Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Free Report) by 28.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,674 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 6,150 shares during the quarter. Birch Capital Management LLC's holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $1,830,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Genuine Parts by 74.0% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 11,311 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,580,000 after purchasing an additional 4,809 shares during the last quarter. Miramar Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 9.8% during the 3rd quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 87,802 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $12,264,000 after acquiring an additional 7,845 shares in the last quarter. Conning Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 261,303 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $36,499,000 after acquiring an additional 19,795 shares during the last quarter. WD Rutherford LLC raised its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 4,265.9% during the third quarter. WD Rutherford LLC now owns 7,422 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,037,000 after purchasing an additional 7,252 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Genuine Parts by 23.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 303,676 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $42,417,000 after purchasing an additional 56,776 shares in the last quarter. 78.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Genuine Parts Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of GPC traded down $0.76 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $116.61. 848,192 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,046,073. The company has a market cap of $16.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.01 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. Genuine Parts has a 12-month low of $112.74 and a 12-month high of $164.45. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $120.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.67.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.42 by ($0.54). Genuine Parts had a net margin of 4.67% and a return on equity of 27.23%. The business had revenue of $6 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.49 earnings per share. Genuine Parts's revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Genuine Parts will post 8.09 EPS for the current year.

Genuine Parts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.43%. Genuine Parts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on GPC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Genuine Parts to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Genuine Parts from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price target on Genuine Parts from $145.00 to $125.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Wedbush reduced their price objective on Genuine Parts from $145.00 to $120.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $139.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Genuine Parts news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 1,608 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.78, for a total transaction of $194,214.24. Following the completion of 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

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.