Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 9,930,000 shares, a growth of 15.6% from the November 30th total of 8,590,000 shares. Currently, 16.8% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 2,640,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advance Auto Parts

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Advance Auto Parts

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AAP. Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 valued at $113,409,000 after purchasing an additional 1,698,155 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in 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 valued at $80,197,000 after buying an additional 547,696 shares during the last quarter. Dorsal Capital Management LP lifted its position 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 buying an additional 768,664 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP boosted its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 31.7% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,075,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,937,000 after buying an additional 258,656 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legion Partners Asset Management LLC grew 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 acquiring an additional 13,300 shares in the last quarter. 88.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Advance Auto Parts Trading Up 2.7 %

NYSE:AAP opened at $47.29 on Wednesday. Advance Auto Parts has a one year low of $35.59 and a one year high of $88.56. The company has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a PE ratio of 64.78 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $41.48 and a 200-day moving average of $48.13.

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

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The business 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 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 136.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AAP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial cut their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $41.00 to $39.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Roth Capital raised shares of Advance Auto Parts to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $60.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.