Boston Trust Walden Corp Makes New Investment in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Boston Trust Walden Corp purchased a new stake in Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 282,602 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $39,474,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned approximately 0.20% of Genuine Parts at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 726.9% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 54,742 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $7,582,000 after purchasing an additional 48,122 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its stake in Genuine Parts by 255.5% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 647 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Genuine Parts by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 48,019 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $7,440,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares during the period. Trilogy Capital Inc. raised its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. now owns 18,739 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,903,000 after buying an additional 1,642 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 49.4% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 144,135 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $22,331,000 after acquiring an additional 47,656 shares during the period. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on GPC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $138.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Genuine Parts from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wedbush lowered 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. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $145.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Genuine Parts has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $139.57.

Genuine Parts Price Performance

Genuine Parts stock opened at $114.24 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.92 billion, a PE ratio of 14.70 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $137.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $142.12. Genuine Parts has a 12 month low of $112.74 and a 12 month high of $164.45.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 the consensus estimate of $5.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.49 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Genuine Parts will post 8.1 EPS for the current year.

Genuine Parts Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.48%.

Genuine Parts 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.