GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. Purchases Shares of 6,500 Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. acquired a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 6,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $307,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 207.4% during 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 in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 1,543.4% during the fourth 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 purchased a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts in the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Advance Auto Parts by 198.3% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AAP. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $39.00 to $34.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.13.

Insider Transactions at Advance Auto Parts

In related news, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. purchased 14,640 shares of Advance Auto Parts stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $34.15 per share, for a total transaction of $499,956.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 34,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,163,490.50. The trade was a 75.35 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Shane M. Okelly purchased 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $36.79 per share, for a total transaction of $55,185.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 183,121 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Down 1.4 %

Advance Auto Parts stock opened at $32.41 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $38.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.21. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.89 and a 1-year high of $79.41. The company has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a PE ratio of 44.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Advance Auto Parts Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given 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 dividend yield of 3.09%. Advance Auto Parts’s payout ratio is currently -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.