Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Short Interest Down 10.6% in July

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,230,000 shares, a decrease of 10.6% from the July 15th total of 8,090,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,490,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.9 days. Approximately 12.3% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Advance Auto Parts Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AAP traded down $1.41 during trading on Monday, reaching $60.78. The company had a trading volume of 750,878 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,617,794. Advance Auto Parts has a 52 week low of $47.73 and a 52 week high of $88.56. The stock has a market cap of $3.62 billion, a PE ratio of 88.70, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 1.22. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $61.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.98.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last issued 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). Advance Auto Parts had a return on equity of 1.59% and a net margin of 0.37%. The business had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.72 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Advance Auto Parts will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 12th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 12th. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is presently 144.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on AAP. Mizuho lowered their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $78.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 10th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on 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. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Advance Auto Parts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $63.36.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Advance Auto Parts

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 267.7% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 353 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the first quarter worth $34,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the first quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. increased its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 1,241.7% during the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 644 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.75% 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.