Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,530,000 shares, an increase of 24.6% from the May 31st total of 2,030,000 shares. Currently, 1.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 966,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on GPC. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $170.00 price target (up from $140.00) on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Friday, April 19th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com raised shares of Genuine Parts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $167.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.00.

Insider Transactions at Genuine Parts

In related news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.29, for a total value of $453,870.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,967,677.74. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Genuine Parts

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,707,699 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $353,436,000 after acquiring an additional 185,913 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 27.0% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,029,388 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $281,078,000 after acquiring an additional 431,623 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 23.7% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,633,941 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $235,916,000 after acquiring an additional 313,438 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts in the fourth quarter valued at about $215,643,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 1.4% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,261,041 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $182,070,000 after acquiring an additional 17,422 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE:GPC traded up $2.13 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $135.98. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,025,479 shares, compared to its average volume of 994,840. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.19 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $147.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $146.55. Genuine Parts has a 1 year low of $126.35 and a 1 year high of $170.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The specialty retailer reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.84 billion. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 5.46% and a return on equity of 30.92%. The firm’s revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.14 EPS. Research analysts expect that Genuine Parts will post 9.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is 44.59%.

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.