Stifel Financial Corp Purchases 445,259 Shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Free Report) by 21.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,502,852 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 445,259 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned 1.80% of Genuine Parts worth $292,233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of GPC. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.83% of the company's stock.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPC traded down $0.47 during trading on Friday, hitting $116.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,171,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,246,656. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $16.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.02 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a 50-day moving average of $119.08 and a 200-day moving average of $120.84. Genuine Parts has a 12 month low of $104.01 and a 12 month high of $162.14.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.66 by $0.09. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 25.28%. The business had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.83 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Genuine Parts's payout ratio is currently 63.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on GPC. Truist Financial upped their price target on Genuine Parts from $133.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Loop Capital initiated coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. Northcoast Research cut shares of Genuine Parts from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $130.86.

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.