Sapient Capital LLC Sells 50,637 Shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Sapient Capital LLC lessened its position in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Free Report) by 42.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 68,071 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 50,637 shares during the quarter. Sapient Capital LLC's holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $8,016,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 4,809 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter valued at about $540,000. Miramar Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 9.8% during the third quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 87,802 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $12,264,000 after buying an additional 7,845 shares during the last quarter. Verity & Verity LLC grew its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 104,473 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $12,198,000 after buying an additional 9,199 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Conning Inc. grew its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 8.2% during the third quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 261,303 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $36,499,000 after buying an additional 19,795 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.83% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 1,608 shares of Genuine Parts stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 11,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,371,698.46. This trade represents a 12.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on GPC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Loop Capital started coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Thursday, January 16th. They set a "buy" rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Genuine Parts to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Northcoast Research lowered shares of Genuine Parts from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Genuine Parts presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $141.50.

Genuine Parts Stock Up 0.2 %

GPC traded up $0.19 on Friday, hitting $124.87. The company had a trading volume of 1,973,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,567,151. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.57. Genuine Parts has a 52-week low of $112.74 and a 52-week high of $164.45. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $118.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $127.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.07 and a beta of 0.94.

Genuine Parts Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.20%. Genuine Parts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.48%.

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.