Franklin Resources Inc. Buys New Shares in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 20,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $960,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AAP. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 207.4% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 541 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 365 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 1,543.4% during the fourth 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 bought a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 198.3% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,575 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings 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 period. Institutional investors own 88.75% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Advance Auto Parts news, CEO Shane M. Okelly acquired 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $36.79 per share, with a total value 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. This represents a 0.83 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. bought 14,640 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $34.15 per share, with a total value of $499,956.00. Following the acquisition, the director now 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on AAP. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective 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. Barclays reduced their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Advance Auto Parts presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $45.13.

Advance Auto Parts Trading Up 3.0 %

NYSE AAP traded up $0.91 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $31.79. 1,617,625 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,222,664. The stock has a market cap of $1.90 billion, a PE ratio of 43.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.07. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.89 and a 52 week high of $79.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $37.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.09. 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 Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. Advance Auto Parts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -17.86%.

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.