Cerity Partners LLC Purchases 8,804 Shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP - Free Report) by 122.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,015 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,804 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Advance Auto Parts were worth $744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AAP. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Advance Auto Parts by 207.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 541 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 1,543.4% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 871 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 818 shares during the period. Vision Financial Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 198.3% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,575 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 38.9% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,674 shares of the company's stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.75% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup decreased their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $45.13.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE:AAP traded down $0.31 on Wednesday, hitting $32.63. 1,186,650 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,216,462. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $37.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market cap of $1.95 billion, a PE ratio of 44.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.07. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a 1 year low of $28.89 and a 1 year high of $78.09.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. Advance Auto Parts's dividend payout ratio is currently -17.86%.

Insider Transactions at Advance Auto Parts

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

Advance Auto Parts Company Profile

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.