River Road Asset Management LLC Sells 110,219 Shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

River Road Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) by 14.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 633,861 shares of the company’s stock after selling 110,219 shares during the quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC owned about 1.07% of Advance Auto Parts worth $38,685,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 190.0% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC boosted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 245.9% during the first quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 508.3% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 427 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 113.7% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 156 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 88.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of Advance Auto Parts stock traded up $2.44 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $74.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,770,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,841,740. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The company has a market cap of $4.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 96.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.17. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a 1-year low of $47.73 and a 1-year high of $129.90. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.22.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.59) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.83). Advance Auto Parts had a return on equity of 1.68% and a net margin of 0.39%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.88 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post 3.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is currently 135.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advance Auto Parts

In other Advance Auto Parts news, EVP Herman L. Word, Jr. sold 1,858 shares of Advance Auto Parts stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.08, for a total transaction of $159,936.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $899,363.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Brent Windom acquired 4,700 shares of Advance Auto Parts stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $85.34 per share, for a total transaction of $401,098.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $853,400. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Herman L. Word, Jr. sold 1,858 shares of Advance Auto Parts stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.08, for a total value of $159,936.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $899,363.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on AAP. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $55.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Mizuho began coverage on Advance Auto Parts in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $78.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $82.00 to $78.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, TheStreet raised Advance Auto Parts from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $70.18.

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.