Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 102,000 Shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its position in shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) by 42.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 342,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 102,000 shares during the quarter. Genuine Parts makes up approximately 1.4% of Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Genuine Parts were worth $39,990,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 284.4% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,999 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 1,479 shares in the last quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Genuine Parts during the third quarter valued at $202,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 63.8% during the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 362 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Genuine Parts by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC now owns 3,063 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $428,000 after buying an additional 688 shares during the period. Finally, CX Institutional increased its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 3,554 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $496,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Northcoast Research cut Genuine Parts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Genuine Parts from $162.00 to $138.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wedbush lowered their target price on shares of Genuine Parts from $145.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Genuine Parts from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.50.

Genuine Parts Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GPC opened at $121.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $16.93 billion, a PE ratio of 15.67 and a beta of 0.94. Genuine Parts has a 1 year low of $112.74 and a 1 year high of $164.45. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $118.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $128.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

Genuine Parts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.29%. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is presently 51.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Genuine Parts

In related news, Director Wendy B. Needham sold 1,608 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.78, for a total transaction of $194,214.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,371,698.46. This trade represents a 12.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Genuine Parts Company 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.