Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong Sell”

Zacks Research cut shares of Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research note published on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Genuine Parts’ Q1 2027 earnings at $2.01 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $2.06 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $2.02 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $1.96 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $8.05 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $9.73 EPS.

GPC has been the topic of a number of other reports. Evercore set a $160.00 price objective on Genuine Parts in a report on Friday, February 20th. Raymond James Financial raised Genuine Parts from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Genuine Parts from $150.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Genuine Parts in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $127.00 target price on shares of Genuine Parts and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.57.

Genuine Parts Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of GPC stock opened at $105.24 on Wednesday. Genuine Parts has a one year low of $96.08 and a one year high of $151.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $124.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.76. The stock has a market cap of $14.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 228.78 and a beta of 0.75.

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The specialty retailer reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.24). Genuine Parts had a net margin of 0.27% and a return on equity of 22.28%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.61 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Genuine Parts has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.000 EPS. Analysts predict that Genuine Parts will post 7.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Genuine Parts Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $4.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. This is a positive change from Genuine Parts’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Genuine Parts’s payout ratio is 923.91%.

Institutional Trading of Genuine Parts

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GPC. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in Genuine Parts by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 17,717 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,111,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Genuine Parts by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 11,746 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,399,000 after purchasing an additional 3,396 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 5.8% in the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 79,557 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $9,651,000 after purchasing an additional 4,374 shares in the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Genuine Parts by 10.2% in the second quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 2,287 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in Genuine Parts by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 45,381 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,499,000 after purchasing an additional 1,502 shares during the last quarter. 78.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.