Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Buys 1,298 Shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) by 9.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,774 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,298 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Advance Auto Parts were worth $618,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AAP. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Advance Auto Parts by 189.0% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the first quarter worth $49,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 1,258.8% in the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 2,140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 69.8% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,842 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares in the last quarter. 88.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Jason Hand sold 948 shares of Advance Auto Parts stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.52, for a total transaction of $45,996.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 9,876 shares in the company, valued at $479,183.52. This trade represents a 8.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective (up from $36.00) on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective (up from $40.00) on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts to $49.17 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 26th. Roth Capital set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nineteen have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Advance Auto Parts presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.53.

Advance Auto Parts Price Performance

Advance Auto Parts stock opened at $60.45 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $54.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.62 billion, a PE ratio of -10.30 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.89 and a 12-month high of $70.00.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 negative net margin of 3.74% and a negative return on equity of 1.76%. The business’s revenue was down 24.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Advance Auto Parts, Inc. will post -0.46 EPS for the current year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 25th. Investors of record on Friday, July 11th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 11th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -17.04%.

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.