Advance Auto Parts Inc. (AAP): DIY to remain a headwind in the near term; FY26 outlook benefits from one-off and non-core drivers

Research evidence excerpt

Equity Research

20 August 2026 | 9:12PM EDT

Advance Auto Parts Inc. (AAP): DIY to remain a headwind in the near

term; FY26 outlook benefits from one-off and non-core drivers

Advance Auto Parts traded lower (-24.6% vs. -0.9% for the S&P 500) after reporting

2Q26 results that missed expectations when excluding a one-time benefit from tariff

refunds, and as the company noted a deceleration in demand during the final four

weeks of the quarter, particularly in their DIY business. We remain Sell rated and

reiterate our view that Advance’s margin recovery story is likely to take longer than

expected to materialize, and we note our view that peers O’Reilly Auto Parts and

AutoZone are better positioned to gain share in the current environment.

Kate McShane, CFA

Our key takeaways from the quarter include: 1) One-off and non-core EPS benefits

are key to maintaining the margin outlook and raising the EPS outlook, in our view, 2)

DIY is likely to remain a headwind in the near term, although quarter-to-date trends

appear to have improved slightly, and 3) Main street DIFM customers remain an

opportunity but competition is a concern.

Nishi Agarwal

+1(212)902-6740 |

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC

Mark Jordan, CFA

+1(617)772-7951 |

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC

Emily Ghosh

+1(713)658-2632 |

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC

+1(332)245-7668 |

Goldman Sachs India SPL

Grace Chee

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC

Samantha Chiang

Key Takeaways

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One-off and non-core benefits to be a significant tailwind to FY26 EPS - The

company recorded a $26mn one-time benefit from tariff refunds during 2Q,

resulting in an approximately 130 bps tailwind to gross/operating margin and a

$0.31 benefit to EPS. On a full-year basis, the tariff refund is expected to be a

~30 bps tailwind to gross/operating margin, and a similar $0.31 benefit to EPS.

The company also raised their outlook for interest income by $20mn ($100mn vs.

$80mn prior) which we estimate will contribute an additional $0.24 in EPS

relative to management’s prior outlook. Taken together, we see the now included

one-off and non-core EPS benefits of $0.55 for FY26 as being key to

management maintaining their margin outlook and raising the EPS outlook. The

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