Advance Auto Parts Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:AAP)

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders purchased 15,532 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 74% compared to the average daily volume of 8,944 put options.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Performance

Shares of AAP opened at $59.80 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.57 billion, a PE ratio of 86.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.20. Advance Auto Parts has a one year low of $47.73 and a one year high of $88.56.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 29th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.43 billion. Advance Auto Parts had a net margin of 0.37% and a return on equity of 1.59%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Advance Auto Parts will post 3.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 12th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 12th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 144.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. StockNews.com raised Advance Auto Parts from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Bank of America increased 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 reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Advance Auto Parts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $63.80.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 60.8% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,658 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the 1st quarter worth approximately $487,000. Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 12.4% in the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 14,590 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,242,000 after buying an additional 1,612 shares during the last quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $639,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 3.3% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,014,639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,336,000 after buying an additional 32,426 shares during the last quarter. 88.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.