Advance Auto Parts reported second-quarter net sales of $2.5 billion, a 7.3% year-over-year increase.
Comparable-store sales jumped 7.5% on a year-over-year basis.
Operating income for the second quarter, which ended July 11, increased 53.9% to $262.8 million.
“Throughout our second quarter, people in the communities we serve felt the significant impact of COVID-19. Our Advance team responded with care and speed to these challenges as we continued to prioritize the health and safety of our customers and team members,” said Tom Greco, president and CEO. “We delivered very strong comparable sales growth of 7.5% in the quarter, our highest quarterly growth rate in nearly 10 years. Adjusted operating income grew 42%, with margins expanding 274 basis points to 11.2%. Behind strong sales growth and margin expansion, we also delivered a 60% increase in quarterly free cash flow.”
During the quarter, Advance got a boost from demand fueled by stimulus checks, extended unemployment benefits “and the impact COVID-19 had on consumer behavior in terms of how they repaired and maintained their vehicles,” Greco noted in a press release.
“With that said, we could not be prouder and more thankful of how our AAP team members and Carquest independent partners stepped up to serve our customers,” he added. “To support them, we made further investments in PPE as well as ongoing sanitation efforts to help ensure our stores and DCs are safe. We supported our Professional customers by providing contact-free delivery options and virtual instructor-led training which led to sequential improvements throughout Q2.
“In DIY omnichannel, investments in marketing, Speed Perks and our digital platforms drove double-digit growth. Though we’re living in a time of great uncertainty, we will continue to prioritize health and safety while leveraging our industry-leading portfolio, which now includes DieHard. We believe that this focus will continue to drive strong results in the back half of the year.”
Through the first five weeks of the third quarter, Advance was seeing “strong growth in DIY omnichannel and positive comparable-store sales in Professional,” the company said.
Advance withdrew its full-year guidance on April 9, given uncertainties related to the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
