Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Receives Consensus Rating of “Reduce” from Analysts

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” by the fifteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and fourteen have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $64.64.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AAP shares. Bank of America raised their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Wedbush restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $78.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Advance Auto Parts from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Down 1.7 %

NYSE AAP opened at $61.05 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of 88.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $62.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.26. Advance Auto Parts has a fifty-two week low of $47.73 and a fifty-two week high of $88.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion for 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 business’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.72 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Advance Auto Parts will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 12th. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is 144.93%.

Institutional Trading of Advance Auto Parts

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kovack Advisors Inc. grew its position in Advance Auto Parts by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 22,727 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 28.0% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 895 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,711 shares of the company’s stock valued at $165,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co boosted its position in Advance Auto Parts by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 6,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $430,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares during the period. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN grew its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 6.8% in the second quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 3,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.