Barclays PLC Increases Stake in Genuine Parts Company $GPC

Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Genuine Parts Company (NYSE:GPC) by 10.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,901,362 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 373,065 shares during the period. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $479,711,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of GPC. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Community Bank N.A. purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. WPG Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 213.0% during the fourth quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 241 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Genuine Parts during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on GPC shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Genuine Parts from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 25th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Genuine Parts from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Genuine Parts from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Genuine Parts in a research note on Friday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $143.71.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider James F. Howe sold 415 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.33, for a total value of $43,296.95. Following the transaction, the insider owned 25,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,669,700.37. This represents a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE:GPC opened at $103.69 on Friday. Genuine Parts Company has a one year low of $90.78 and a one year high of $151.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $102.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 241.14 and a beta of 0.66.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.02. Genuine Parts had a net margin of 0.24% and a return on equity of 22.28%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. Genuine Parts’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Genuine Parts has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.000 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Genuine Parts Company will post 7.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Genuine Parts Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $1.0625 dividend. This represents a $4.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Genuine Parts’s dividend payout ratio is currently 988.37%.

About Genuine Parts

Genuine Parts Company (NYSE: GPC) is a global distributor of automotive replacement parts, industrial parts and business products with a history dating back to 1928. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company operates a broad distribution network and retail presence serving repair shops, independent retailers, industrial customers and commercial accounts. Its business model centers on stocking and delivering a wide range of parts and supplies to support aftermarket and maintenance needs across multiple end markets.

Genuine Parts conducts its operations through several well-known operating groups and subsidiaries.