Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC Makes New Investment in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 7,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $292,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AAP. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Advance Auto Parts by 0.6% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 59,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,055,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 12,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,086,000 after acquiring an additional 1,197 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at $207,000. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 24.4% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 77,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,555,000 after acquiring an additional 15,093 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on AAP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. UBS Group upped their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $38.00 target price (down from $45.00) on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $71.00 to $67.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.14.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Performance

Shares of AAP opened at $37.69 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.63 and a beta of 1.17. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a 12-month low of $35.59 and a 12-month high of $88.56. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $39.02 and its 200-day moving average is $54.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.22). Advance Auto Parts had a net margin of 0.41% and a return on equity of 1.82%. The business had revenue of $2.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. Advance Auto Parts’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post 2.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio is 136.99%.

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.