Advance Auto Parts Q1 Profit Rises; Lifts 2014 Comparable EPS View - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Advance Auto Parts Inc. (AAP) reported that its first-quarter net income rose to $147.73 million from last year's $121.79 million, with earnings per share increasing to $2.01 from $1.65 in the same quarter last year.

Quarterly comparable earnings per share were $2.25, an increase of 35.5% versus the first quarter last year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $2.16 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items. These first quarter comparable results exclude $0.11 of amortization of acquired intangible assets, integration costs of $0.10 associated with the acquisition of General Parts International Inc. and $0.03 of integration costs associated with the integration of B.W.P. Distributors Inc.

Total sales for the first quarter increased 47.3% to $2.97 billion, from last year's $2.02 billion. The sales increase was driven by the acquisition of General Parts, solid execution delivering a comparable same store sales increase of 2.4% and the addition of new stores over the past 12 months. Wall Street expected revenues of $2.98 billion for the quarter.

On May 14, 2014, the Company's Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.06 per share to be paid on July 2, 2014 to stockholders of record as of June 18, 2014.

The company raised its fiscal year 2014 comparable cash earnings per share guidance to a range of $7.30 - $7.50 from the prior estimate of $7.20 to $7.40 per share. Analysts project annual earnings per share of $7.50.