Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $119.14, but opened at $116.00. Genuine Parts shares last traded at $117.22, with a volume of 189,196 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on GPC shares. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Genuine Parts from $129.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Loop Capital assumed coverage on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $125.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and set a $114.00 target price (down previously from $133.00) on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Northcoast Research cut Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Genuine Parts has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $135.00.

Genuine Parts Stock Down 0.7 %

The company has a market cap of $16.42 billion, a PE ratio of 18.29 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $121.14 and a 200-day moving average of $123.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The specialty retailer reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.07. Genuine Parts had a return on equity of 25.28% and a net margin of 3.85%. The firm had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.26 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.48%. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is presently 63.68%.

Institutional Trading of Genuine Parts

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

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.