Willis Investment Counsel Increases Holdings in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Willis Investment Counsel grew its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP - Free Report) by 69.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 72,173 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 29,695 shares during the period. Willis Investment Counsel owned approximately 0.12% of Advance Auto Parts worth $2,830,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 132.3% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 19,981 shares of the company's stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 11,378 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 209.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,871 shares of the company's stock valued at $191,000 after buying an additional 3,296 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its position in Advance Auto Parts by 93.9% in the first quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 21,906 shares of the company's stock valued at $859,000 after acquiring an additional 10,606 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 26.8% in the 1st quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 33,639 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,319,000 after purchasing an additional 7,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. Institutional investors own 88.75% of the company's stock.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Performance

AAP stock traded down $2.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $48.41. The company had a trading volume of 2,127,383 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,478,258. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market cap of $2.90 billion, a PE ratio of 66.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.06. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $38.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.45. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.89 and a 12 month high of $67.03.

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

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 11th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 11th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. Advance Auto Parts's payout ratio is currently -17.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on AAP shares. Redburn Partners raised shares of Advance Auto Parts from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $45.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $39.00 to $34.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts to $49.17 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 26th. Roth Capital set a $50.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a report on Monday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $46.01.

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.