UPDATE: Goldman Sachs Reiterates Sell Rating, Raises PT on Genuine Parts Company on 4Q Results

In a report published Wednesday, Goldman Sachs reiterated its Sell rating on Genuine Parts Company (NYSE: GPC), and raised its price target from $65.00 to $67.00.Goldman Sachs noted, “GPC's 4Q results confirmed concerns related to slowing revenue growth; sales fell short of our expectations. A calendar shift that reportedly hurt 3Q failed to provide a meaningful boost to 4Q, as a holiday timing shift offset projected benefits, and underlying top-line trends slowed sequentially within the automotive, industrial and electrical segments. Moreover, quality was not optimal as margins within the auto segment were impacted by one-time inventory gains (not quantified) and overall margins were positively impacted by a reversal of bad debt expense. Management tone on current business trends is cautious. We believe GPC's automotive sales trends remain lackluster in 1Q, and GPC's industrial/electrical sales trends seem not to be snapping back from customers' year-end fiscal cliff scare, potentially underperforming a sales recovery at industrial peers GWW/FAST.”Genuine Parts Company closed on Tuesday at $68.75.