28,647 Shares in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Acquired by Virtu Financial LLC

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 28,647 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,117,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AAP. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Advance Auto Parts in the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 98.7% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 769 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the second quarter worth approximately $63,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 29.1% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,749 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank purchased a new position in Advance Auto Parts in the 3rd quarter valued at $78,000. 88.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Advance Auto Parts Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of AAP stock traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $43.86. The company had a trading volume of 1,420,341 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,081,879. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.62 billion, a PE ratio of 60.08 and a beta of 1.21. The company's fifty day moving average is $40.24 and its 200 day moving average is $50.14. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $35.59 and a fifty-two week high of $88.56.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The company reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 analysts' expectations of $2.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.82) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post -0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

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 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 dividend yield of 2.28%. Advance Auto Parts's dividend payout ratio is presently 136.99%.

Insider Activity

In other 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 value of $56,220.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,266 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,069,159.96. This trade represents a 5.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AAP. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $52.00 to $46.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a report on Friday. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $45.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $48.40.

Advance Auto Parts 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.