Advance Auto Parts surges as Q1 results show comps and margins rebounding

Advance Auto Parts (AAP) is up 19.4% today. Here is some analysis on what might have caused this price movement.

Analysis: The move appears driven by a stronger-than-expected turnaround signal in the company’s first-quarter 2026 earnings update, including meaningful comparable-sales growth and sharp margin expansion. Even though full-year guidance was reaffirmed (not raised), investors likely reacted to improved execution indicators that can change confidence in the recovery path.

Details:

Advance Auto Parts reported first-quarter 2026 comparable store sales growth of 3.5%, with mid-single-digit growth in its Pro business and low-single-digit growth in DIY.

Adjusted operating income margin expanded to 3.8% in the quarter, up about 410 basis points year over year, reflecting higher product margins and lower store-optimization-related headwinds versus the prior-year period.

Adjusted diluted EPS was $0.77 for the quarter, compared with an adjusted diluted loss of $(0.22) in the year-ago quarter.

The company reaffirmed full-year 2026 guidance ranges (including net sales of about $8.485–$8.575 billion and adjusted diluted EPS of about $2.40–$3.10) and declared a $0.25 quarterly cash dividend payable July 24, 2026.

Sources:

Advance Auto Parts (Form 8-K / earnings release), StockTitan

Disclaimer: This price movement analysis was generated with the help of AI. Please double-check the information provided for mistakes.

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$AAP Hedge Fund Activity

We have seen 171 institutional investors add shares of $AAP stock to their portfolio, and 213 decrease their positions in their most recent quarter.

Here are some of the largest recent moves:

FMR LLC removed 659,342 shares (-33.9%) from their portfolio in Q1 2026, for an estimated $34,780,290
PRIVATE MANAGEMENT GROUP INC added 512,024 shares (+inf%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $20,122,543
PRICE T ROWE ASSOCIATES INC /MD/ added 510,452 shares (+6.8%) to their portfolio in Q1 2026, for an estimated $26,926,343
COOPER CREEK PARTNERS MANAGEMENT LLC removed 489,703 shares (-25.4%) from their portfolio in Q1 2026, for an estimated $25,831,833
H PARTNERS MANAGEMENT, LLC added 450,000 shares (+50.0%) to their portfolio in Q1 2026, for an estimated $23,737,500
T. ROWE PRICE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT, INC. removed 372,659 shares (-57.0%) from their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $14,645,498
ROYCE & ASSOCIATES LP added 345,217 shares (+30.5%) to their portfolio in Q4 2025, for an estimated $13,567,028

To track hedge funds' stock portfolios, check out Quiver Quantitative's institutional holdings dashboard. You can access data on hedge funds moves and 13F filings through the Quiver Quantitative API 13F endpoint.

$AAP Price Targets

Multiple analysts have issued price targets for $AAP recently. We have seen 10 analysts offer price targets for $AAP in the last 6 months, with a median target of $56.0.

Here are some recent targets:

Christopher Horvers from JP Morgan set a target price of $59.0 on 05/15/2026
Scott Ciccarelli from Truist Securities set a target price of $55.0 on 05/13/2026
Steven Zaccone from Citigroup set a target price of $57.0 on 05/12/2026
Michael Baker from DA Davidson set a target price of $47.0 on 02/17/2026
Tristan Thomas-Martin from BMO Capital set a target price of $60.0 on 02/17/2026
Steven Shemesh from RBC Capital set a target price of $63.0 on 02/17/2026
Greg Melich from Evercore ISI Group set a target price of $60.0 on 02/11/2026

This article is not financial advice. See Quiver Quantitative's disclaimers for more information. Note that there may be inaccuracies due to mistakes in ticker-mapping, and other anomalies.