H Partners Buys Another $19 Million in Advance Auto Parts Amid Stock's Ongoing Turnaround
Key Points
H Partners bought 375,000 Advance Auto Parts shares; estimated transaction value ~$18.80 million (based on quarterly average price).
Quarter-end position value rose by $3.13 million, reflecting both share change and stock price moves.
The transaction represented an 11.9% increase relative to the 13F reportable AUM.
Post-trade stake: 900,000 shares valued at $35.37 million.
Advance Auto Parts position now 22.4% of fund AUM.
- 10 stocks we like better than Advance Auto Parts ›
What happened
According to a SEC filing dated Feb. 17, 2026, H Partners Management, LLC increased its holding in Advance Auto Parts (NYSE:AAP) by 375,000 shares during the fourth quarter. The estimated transaction value is $18.80 million, calculated from the quarterly average share price. At quarter-end, the position’s value was $35.37 million.
What else to know
H Partners’ buy lifts Advance Auto Parts to 22.4% of 13F AUM, making it the fund’s third-largest holding.
- Top holdings after the filing:
- Six Flags Entertainment: $71.33 million (45.2% of AUM)
- Harley-Davidson: $51.23 million (32.4% of AUM)
- Advance Auto Parts: $35.37 million (22.4% of AUM)
As of March 12, 2026, Advance Auto Parts shares were up 44.2% over the last year, outperforming the S&P 500 by 24 percentage points.
Company overview
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Revenue (TTM) | $8.6 billion |
| Net income (TTM) | $68.00 million |
| Dividend yield | 1.9% |
| Price (as of market close March 12, 2026) | $52.66 |
Company snapshot
Advance Auto Parts:
- Offers automotive replacement parts, accessories, batteries, and maintenance items for a broad range of vehicles, including domestic and imported cars, SUVs, and trucks.
- Generates revenue through retail and commercial sales across physical stores, branches, and online channels, supported by value-added services such as installation and diagnostics.
- Serves both professional installers and do-it-yourself customers, targeting the automotive aftermarket segment in North America and select international markets.
Advance Auto Parts is a leading specialty retailer in the automotive aftermarket, operating thousands of stores and branches across the United States, Canada, and select international locations. The company leverages a multi-channel approach and a broad product assortment to address the needs of both professional and retail customers. Its scale, established brands, and comprehensive service offerings provide a competitive advantage in a fragmented market.
What this transaction means for investors
H Partners is a new activist investment firm that emphasizes buying underperforming equities that offer higher risk-reward ratios. In this sense, Advance Auto Parts is a perfect stock for them to buy as they are in the midst of a broad transformation, and hopefully a turnaround. Down 78% from its 2022 high, AAP watched peers O’Reilly Auto and AutoZone rocket past it as it struggled with mismanagement, supply chain issues, and poor pricing strategies.
However, once H Partners came on board alongside a couple of other activist investment firms, a new CEO was appointed, and a few board members with years of industry experience were added. Over the last year, AAP has started to show signs of life, with its stock up over 40% and its same-store sales positive again. The company sold 700 of its roughly 5,000 underperforming stores, exited California completely, and sold its low-margin wholesale distribution business to reduce its perilous debt load.
Following these moves, AAP’s adjusted operating income margin improved from -2.5% in the second half of 2023 to 2.5% in 2025. Management guided for this figure to rise to roughly 4% in 2026 and to one day hit 7% once it is firing on all cylinders. If the steadily streamlining company can get even close to these figures, it could be a steal at just 0.37 times sales. By comparison, O’Reilly Auto and AutoZone trade at 4.5 and 3.2 times sales, as the market assigns a premium valuation on their vastly more efficient operations. Powered by its new management -- and bringing in Palantir and its software to improve its product assortment in each market -- Advance Auto Parts is the rare turnaround stock I might actually believe in, and I see why H Partners is interested in adding shares.
Should you buy stock in Advance Auto Parts right now?
Before you buy stock in Advance Auto Parts, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Advance Auto Parts wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $511,735!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,140,464!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 946% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 191% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
See the 10 stocks »
*Stock Advisor returns as of March 12, 2026.
Josh Kohn-Lindquist has positions in AutoZone, O'Reilly Automotive, and Palantir Technologies. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Palantir Technologies and Six Flags Entertainment. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Recommended Articles
