Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) Trading Down 4.4% After Analyst Downgrade

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) traded down 4.4% during trading on Tuesday after Evercore ISI lowered their price target on the stock from $71.00 to $67.00. Evercore ISI currently has an in-line rating on the stock. Advance Auto Parts traded as low as $38.93 and last traded at $39.19. 340,761 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 1,953,665 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.98.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on AAP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $38.00 price target (down from $45.00) on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 13th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $65.00 to $55.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Advance Auto Parts presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.86.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Advance Auto Parts

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 267.7% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 353 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at about $43,000. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 1,241.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $2.34 billion, a PE ratio of 56.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $2.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.67 billion. Advance Auto Parts had a net margin of 0.01% and a return on equity of 0.05%. The company’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Friday, October 11th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 11th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is currently 144.93%.

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.