Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, fourteen have issued a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $47.93.

A number of research firms have issued reports on AAP. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $45.00 price objective for the company. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Roth Mkm reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Roth Capital raised Advance Auto Parts to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th.

Advance Auto Parts Price Performance

Shares of Advance Auto Parts stock opened at $45.93 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.91, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.46. Advance Auto Parts has a 12 month low of $35.59 and a 12 month high of $88.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.53). The business had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.62 billion. Advance Auto Parts had a return on equity of 1.82% and a net margin of 0.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.82) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Advance Auto Parts will post -0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 136.99%.

Insider Transactions at Advance Auto Parts

In related news, EVP Tammy M. Finley sold 1,276 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.06, for a total value of $56,220.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,069,159.96. This represents a 5.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Advance Auto Parts

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 59.2% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 169,557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,738,000 after buying an additional 63,031 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 108.5% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 92,883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,882,000 after acquiring an additional 48,328 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Advance Auto Parts by 76.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,266,362 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,197,000 after purchasing an additional 547,696 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 26.9% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 185,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,745,000 after purchasing an additional 39,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 27,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,748,000 after buying an additional 3,200 shares in the last quarter. 88.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Advance Auto Parts

Advance Auto Parts, Inc provides automotive replacement parts, accessories, batteries, and maintenance items for domestic and imported cars, vans, sport utility vehicles, and light and heavy duty trucks. The company offers battery accessories; belts and hoses; brakes and brake pads; chassis and climate control parts; clutches and drive shafts; engines and engine parts; exhaust systems and parts; hub assemblies; ignition components and wires; radiators and cooling parts; starters and alternators; and steering and alignment parts.