Stifel Financial Corp Lowers Position in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Stifel Financial Corp reduced its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) by 43.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,805 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,297 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp’s holdings in Advance Auto Parts were worth $421,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AAP. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Advance Auto Parts by 56.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,205 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 436 shares in the last quarter. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the second quarter valued at $63,000. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank acquired a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the 3rd quarter worth $78,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advance Auto Parts

In other news, EVP Tammy M. Finley sold 1,276 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.06, for a total value of $56,220.56. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,266 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,159.96. This trade represents a 5.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.35% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Advance Auto Parts Price Performance

AAP stock opened at $44.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.36 and a beta of 1.21. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $35.59 and a 52-week high of $88.56. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $48.72.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 14th. The company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $2.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.82) earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post -0.54 EPS for the current year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio is currently 136.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AAP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $38.00 price target (down previously from $45.00) on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Roth Capital raised Advance Auto Parts to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Advance Auto Parts presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.40.

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.