Ameriprise Financial Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP - Free Report) by 60.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 276,788 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 104,333 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.46% of Advance Auto Parts worth $13,089,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 1,543.4% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 871 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 818 shares during the last quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the 4th quarter worth about $46,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 38.9% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,674 shares of the company's stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 51.6% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,651 shares of the company's stock worth $125,000 after buying an additional 902 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.75% of the company's stock.

Advance Auto Parts Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE AAP traded down $0.47 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $48.70. The stock had a trading volume of 9,526,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,437,309. The company has a market capitalization of $2.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.71, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.93. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.89 and a 1-year high of $71.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $34.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.37.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The company reported ($0.22) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.81) by $0.59. The firm had revenue of $2.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. Advance Auto Parts had a return on equity of 1.82% and a net margin of 0.41%. Advance Auto Parts's revenue for the quarter was down 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.67 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post -0.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Friday, July 11th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 11th. Advance Auto Parts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -17.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Advance Auto Parts news, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. acquired 14,640 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $34.15 per share, for a total transaction of $499,956.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 34,070 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,163,490.50. This trade represents a 75.35% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Shane M. Okelly acquired 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $36.79 per share, for a total transaction of $55,185.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 183,121 shares in the company, valued at $6,737,021.59. The trade was a 0.83% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on AAP shares. Bank of America raised their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup decreased their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $35.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $48.00 price target (up from $43.00) on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $35.00 price target on Advance Auto Parts and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $45.71.

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.