Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) Stock Price Down 7% – Here’s Why

Shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) fell 7% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $41.23 and last traded at $41.31. 495,936 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 2,065,706 shares. The stock had previously closed at $44.44.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AAP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Roth Capital raised Advance Auto Parts to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.64.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Down 7.0 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.47 billion, a PE ratio of 56.64 and a beta of 1.17. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $52.06.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.53). Advance Auto Parts had a net margin of 0.41% and a return on equity of 1.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.82) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post -0.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 136.99%.

Institutional Trading of Advance Auto Parts

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its position in Advance Auto Parts by 140.3% in the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,908,658 shares of the company’s stock worth $113,409,000 after acquiring an additional 1,698,155 shares during the period. Dorsal Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 159.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dorsal Capital Management LP now owns 1,250,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,162,000 after purchasing an additional 768,664 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 76.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,266,362 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,197,000 after purchasing an additional 547,696 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Advance Auto Parts in the third quarter valued at approximately $17,477,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Advance Auto Parts during the third quarter valued at $14,684,000. 88.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.