Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Shares Sold by State Street Corp

State Street Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,143,300 shares of the company’s stock after selling 149,008 shares during the period. State Street Corp owned 3.59% of Advance Auto Parts worth $83,567,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its position in Advance Auto Parts by 140.3% during the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,908,658 shares of the company’s stock worth $113,409,000 after buying an additional 1,698,155 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 76.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,266,362 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,197,000 after purchasing an additional 547,696 shares during the period. Dorsal Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 159.7% in the second quarter. Dorsal Capital Management LP now owns 1,250,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,162,000 after purchasing an additional 768,664 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP increased its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 31.7% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,075,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,937,000 after purchasing an additional 258,656 shares during the period. Finally, Legion Partners Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 1.7% in the second quarter. Legion Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 786,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,793,000 after purchasing an additional 13,300 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AAP. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $38.00 price target (down from $45.00) on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Roth Capital upgraded Advance Auto Parts to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $65.00 to $55.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Advance Auto Parts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $48.40.

Insider Activity at Advance Auto Parts

In related news, EVP Tammy M. Finley sold 1,276 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.06, for a total value of $56,220.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,266 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,069,159.96. This represents a 5.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Performance

NYSE AAP opened at $43.98 on Tuesday. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $35.59 and a fifty-two week high of $88.56. The stock has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.25 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a fifty day moving average of $40.34 and a 200-day moving average of $49.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

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 return on equity of 1.82% and a net margin of 0.41%. The company had revenue of $2.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.62 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.82) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post -0.54 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.27%. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is currently 136.99%.

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.