Bastion Asset Management Inc. Acquires Shares of 81,177 Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP)

Bastion Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 81,177 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,559,000. Advance Auto Parts accounts for approximately 2.3% of Bastion Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position 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 lifted its position 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 in the last quarter. Vision Financial Markets LLC acquired a new position in shares of Advance Auto Parts during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in Advance Auto Parts during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased 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 period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Shane M. Okelly bought 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $36.79 per share, for a total transaction of $55,185.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 183,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,737,021.59. This trade represents a 0.83 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. purchased 14,640 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $34.15 per share, for a total transaction of $499,956.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 34,070 shares in the company, valued at $1,163,490.50. This trade represents a 75.35 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Advance Auto Parts in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Advance Auto Parts from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup cut their target price on Advance Auto Parts from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Advance Auto Parts from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Advance Auto Parts from $66.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.13.

Advance Auto Parts Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of Advance Auto Parts stock opened at $33.37 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.89 and a 1-year high of $77.49. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $35.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.68. The company has a market capitalization of $2.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.71, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.07.

Advance Auto Parts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 11th. Advance Auto Parts’s dividend payout ratio is currently -17.86%.

Advance Auto Parts Company Profile

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.