Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Hold" from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $47.93.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $60.00 to $43.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $52.00 to $46.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Roth Mkm reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Up 2.2 %

AAP traded up $1.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $48.43. The company had a trading volume of 1,308,699 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,718,200. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $44.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.37. Advance Auto Parts has a 52 week low of $35.59 and a 52 week high of $88.56. The company has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.34, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP - Get Free Report) last posted 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). Advance Auto Parts had a return on equity of 1.82% and a net margin of 0.41%. The firm had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.62 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.82) earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Advance Auto Parts will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Advance Auto Parts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 136.99%.

Insider Activity at Advance Auto Parts

In other Advance Auto Parts news, EVP Tammy M. Finley sold 1,276 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.06, for a total transaction of $56,220.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,266 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,159.96. This represents a 5.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Advance Auto Parts

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 140.3% during the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,908,658 shares of the company's stock valued at $113,409,000 after buying an additional 1,698,155 shares during the period. Dorsal Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 159.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dorsal Capital Management LP now owns 1,250,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,162,000 after purchasing an additional 768,664 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of 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. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the third quarter worth $17,477,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Advance Auto Parts during the third quarter worth about $14,684,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.