Short Interest in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Increases By 26.6%

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,860,000 shares, an increase of 26.6% from the May 15th total of 4,630,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,810,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.2 days. Currently, 9.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Advance Auto Parts Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Advance Auto Parts stock traded up $0.75 during trading on Monday, hitting $64.17. The stock had a trading volume of 1,618,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,751,054. The stock has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a PE ratio of 91.91, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.20. Advance Auto Parts has a 12 month low of $47.73 and a 12 month high of $88.56. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.29.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.43 billion. Advance Auto Parts had a return on equity of 1.59% and a net margin of 0.37%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Advance Auto Parts will post 3.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Investors of record on Friday, July 12th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 12th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 144.93%.

Insider Transactions at Advance Auto Parts

In related news, EVP Herman L. Word, Jr. sold 1,858 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.08, for a total transaction of $159,936.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,448 shares in the company, valued at $899,363.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Brent Windom bought 4,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $85.34 per share, for a total transaction of $401,098.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $853,400. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Herman L. Word, Jr. sold 1,858 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.08, for a total transaction of $159,936.64. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $899,363.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. 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 buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Advance Auto Parts in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in Advance Auto Parts by 190.0% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Advance Auto Parts during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at about $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $78.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $70.00 to $63.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.93.

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.