Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Short Interest Up 5.4% in September

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 10,080,000 shares, an increase of 5.4% from the September 15th total of 9,560,000 shares. Approximately 17.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,400,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.2 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 25.7% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $148,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 44.0% in the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 9,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $823,000 after acquiring an additional 2,957 shares during the last quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $241,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Advance Auto Parts by 267.7% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 353 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. 88.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AAP opened at $39.49 on Friday. Advance Auto Parts has a 12-month low of $36.40 and a 12-month high of $88.56. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $44.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.02. The firm has a market cap of $2.35 billion, a PE ratio of 57.04, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $2.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.67 billion. Advance Auto Parts had a return on equity of 0.05% and a net margin of 0.01%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.43 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Advance Auto Parts will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 11th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 144.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wedbush upgraded shares of Advance Auto Parts from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $63.00 to $46.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Roth Capital upgraded Advance Auto Parts to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Roth Mkm reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $40.00 price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $38.00 target price (down from $45.00) on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.36.

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.