Advance Auto Parts Beats Estimates; Raises Guidance (AAP)

Advance Auto Parts Inc. AAP reports Q3 earnings of $1.03 versus consensus of $0.91. Advance Auto Parts Inc. reports revenues of $1.41 billion versus consensus of $1.36 billion. AAP noted that Q3 gross profit was 50.3% and that comp store sales increased 9.9% during the quarter. Revenues increased 11.4% year over year. "I would like to thank our 51,000 Team Members for delivering another record performance in our third quarter of 2010. Our passion for serving our customers and growing our business has enabled us to accelerate growth and capitalize on strong industry fundamentals and consumer demand for auto parts," said Darren R. Jackson, Chief Executive Officer. "Through the strength of our Team and the focus on our strategies, we have produced comparable store sales and bottom-line results that exceeded our expectations. We will continue to focus on consistency and providing a differentiated experience by leading in service and ensuring superior parts availability." "During our third quarter we continued to benefit from favorable industry dynamics, previous strategic investments and strong Team Member execution. Given our strong third quarter performance, we are increasing our fiscal 2010 annual EPS outlook to be in the range of $3.80 to $3.90." Shares of AAP are higher in the after-hours 4.77%.