Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) Shares Up 3.2% – Here’s Why

Shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) shot up 3.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $38.37 and last traded at $38.12. 578,957 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 2,105,495 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.92.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on AAP. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $66.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $39.00 to $34.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.13.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market cap of $2.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $43.12 and its 200 day moving average is $41.92.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -17.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Shane M. Okelly purchased 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $36.79 per share, for a total transaction of $55,185.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 183,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,737,021.59. This trade represents a 0.83 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. purchased 14,640 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $34.15 per share, for a total transaction of $499,956.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 34,070 shares in the company, valued at $1,163,490.50. This represents a 75.35 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 34.3% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,685,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,706,328 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 11.2% during the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,449,554 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,129,000 after purchasing an additional 347,587 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 3,270,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $154,681,000 after purchasing an additional 362,239 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,728,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,016,000 after purchasing an additional 297,741 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eminence Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the fourth quarter worth $87,214,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

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.