Quest Partners LLC Buys New Position in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 14,839 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $579,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in Advance Auto Parts by 4.5% during the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 59,203 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,040,000 after purchasing an additional 2,537 shares in the last quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $310,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 104,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,858,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter worth approximately $394,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 1.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 3,998,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $340,268,000 after purchasing an additional 40,669 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Advance Auto Parts Price Performance

Advance Auto Parts stock opened at $40.79 on Friday. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $39.03 and its 200 day moving average is $53.39. The company has a market cap of $2.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.27 and a beta of 1.17.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.62 billion. Advance Auto Parts had a net margin of 0.41% and a return on equity of 1.82%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.82) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post -0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is 136.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AAP. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 16th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group lifted their target price 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. Finally, 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.64.

Advance Auto Parts 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.