West Tower Group LLC Makes New Investment in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

West Tower Group LLC purchased a new position in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 2,000 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $279,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Qsemble Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Genuine Parts in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $354,000. Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 19,994 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,793,000 after acquiring an additional 492 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Genuine Parts by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 20,238 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,827,000 after acquiring an additional 2,312 shares during the period. Marco Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Marco Investment Management LLC now owns 7,904 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,104,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 66.8% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,812 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 1,126 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GPC opened at $129.54 on Tuesday. Genuine Parts has a 1-year low of $112.74 and a 1-year high of $164.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $129.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.01 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67 and a beta of 0.92.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.42 by ($0.54). Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 27.23% and a net margin of 4.67%. The company had revenue of $6 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.49 earnings per share. Genuine Parts’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect 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 will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on GPC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wedbush reduced their target price 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. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $138.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com cut Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Genuine Parts from $164.00 to $129.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Genuine Parts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $139.57.

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.