William Blair Investment Management LLC Takes Position in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 4,479 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $212,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AAP. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,865 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 26,258 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,242,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC raised its position in Advance Auto Parts by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 6,680 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 317 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Advance Auto Parts by 207.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of Advance Auto Parts by 29.1% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Down 2.0 %

AAP stock opened at $36.95 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a PE ratio of 50.62, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.27. Advance Auto Parts, Inc. has a one year low of $33.08 and a one year high of $88.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $43.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.00.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -17.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AAP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays lowered their price target on 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. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup dropped 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 report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.13.

Insider Transactions at Advance Auto Parts

In other Advance Auto Parts news, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. bought 14,640 shares of Advance Auto Parts stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $34.15 per share, for a total transaction of $499,956.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 34,070 shares in the company, valued at $1,163,490.50. This 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 purchased 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $36.79 per share, with a total value of $55,185.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 183,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,737,021.59. This represents a 0.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

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.