Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) Sets New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $32.30 and last traded at $32.70, with a volume of 195230 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.01.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AAP. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $66.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.13.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Down 7.7 %

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 company has a market cap of $1.93 billion, a PE ratio of 44.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.07. The business’s 50 day moving average is $41.57 and its 200-day moving average is $41.77.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -17.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Advance Auto Parts news, CEO Shane M. Okelly bought 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $36.79 per share, for a total transaction of $55,185.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 183,121 shares in the company, valued at $6,737,021.59. This trade represents a 0.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. purchased 14,640 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $34.15 per share, for a total transaction of $499,956.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 34,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,163,490.50. The trade was a 75.35 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Advance Auto Parts

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AAP. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the third quarter valued at $503,000. Savoie Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 117.2% during the third quarter. Savoie Capital LLC now owns 69,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,710,000 after purchasing an additional 37,500 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,117,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 207.4% in 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. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Advance Auto Parts by 198.3% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,575 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

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.