20,295 Shares in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) Bought by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new stake in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 20,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $960,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AAP. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of 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 period. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Advance Auto Parts by 1,543.4% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 871 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 818 shares during the last quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 198.3% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,575 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 38.9% during the fourth 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 and hedge funds own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $66.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Advance Auto Parts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advance Auto Parts

In other news, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. bought 14,640 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $34.15 per share, with a total value of $499,956.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 34,070 shares in the company, valued at $1,163,490.50. This trade represents a 75.35 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Shane M. Okelly bought 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $36.79 per share, with a total value of $55,185.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 183,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,737,021.59. This trade represents a 0.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Performance

AAP opened at $32.41 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.21. The firm has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a PE ratio of 44.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.07. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $28.89 and a fifty-two week high of $79.41.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is presently -17.86%.

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.