Shane M. Okelly Buys 1,500 Shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Stock

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) CEO Shane M. Okelly bought 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $36.79 per share, for a total transaction of $55,185.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 183,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,737,021.59. This represents a 0.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AAP traded up $1.15 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $37.67. 2,523,151 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,320,268. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $42.36. 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 1-year low of $33.08 and a 1-year high of $88.56. The firm has a market cap of $2.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.27.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is -17.86%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 207.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 1,543.4% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 871 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 818 shares during the period. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in Advance Auto Parts by 29.1% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group boosted their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.13.

Advance Auto Parts Company 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.