Advance Auto Parts Beats Up on Analysts Yet Again

Seth Jayson, The Motley Fool
Updated

Advance Auto Parts (NYS: AAP) reported earnings on Feb. 16. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended Dec. 31 (Q4), Advance Auto Parts met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue increased and GAAP earnings per share grew significantly.

Gross margins contracted, operating margins grew, net margins improved.

Revenue details
Advance Auto Parts chalked up revenue of $1.33 billion. The 18 analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ predicted a top line of $1.33 billion on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 4.5% higher than the prior-year quarter's $1.27 billion.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
EPS came in at $0.90. The 21 earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ anticipated $0.74 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.90 for Q4 were 58% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.57 per share.

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Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Margin details
For the quarter, gross margin was 49.0%, 40 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 8.4%, 180 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 5.0%, 120 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead
Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $2.00 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.74.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $6.47 billion. The average EPS estimate is $5.90.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 225 members out of 248 rating the stock outperform, and 23 members rating it underperform. Among 71 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 67 give Advance Auto Parts a green thumbs-up, and four give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Advance Auto Parts is outperform, with an average price target of $74.11.

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At the time thisarticle was published Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor ofMotley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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