Traders Purchase Large Volume of Put Options on Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP)

Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors bought 15,532 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 74% compared to the typical daily volume of 8,944 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AAP. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $68.00 to $65.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $70.00 to $63.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $70.00 price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Advance Auto Parts from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Advance Auto Parts presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.80.

Advance Auto Parts Price Performance

Shares of Advance Auto Parts stock traded up $0.82 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $60.53. 704,955 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,716,905. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 86.94, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $69.32 and its 200-day moving average is $69.43. Advance Auto Parts has a 52 week low of $47.73 and a 52 week high of $88.56.

Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 29th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.43 billion. Advance Auto Parts had a net margin of 0.37% and a return on equity of 1.59%. Advance Auto Parts’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Advance Auto Parts will post 3.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 26th. Investors of record on Friday, July 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 12th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio is presently 144.93%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Advance Auto Parts

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AAP. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 53.4% in the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 4,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 1,534 shares during the period. Armistice Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $203,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $210,000. Kepos Capital LP purchased a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,356,000. Finally, Cito Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in Advance Auto Parts in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $570,000. 88.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.