Advance Auto Parts Plunges Over 20% After Revenue Miss and DIY Sales Slump Overshadow Earnings Beat

Advance Auto Parts reported second-quarter 2026 results before the opening bell on August 20 that sent shares tumbling roughly 21% to around $44.33, with the selloff also dragging AutoZone down about 4% and O'Reilly Automotive lower. The company posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.03, beating the Wall Street consensus of $0.81 by 27% and rising 49% year over year from $0.69. Revenue, however, came in at $2.000 billion, missing analyst projections of $2.039 billion by roughly $40 million and slipping 0.5% from $2.010 billion in the year-ago period.

Comparable store sales declined, with growth in the professional customer segment more than offset by a larger-than-expected drop in do-it-yourself sales, as cash-strapped consumers pulled back on discretionary auto maintenance spending. On the outlook, Advance raised its full-year adjusted EPS guidance to a range of $2.60 to $3.30, up from a prior range of $2.40 to $3.10, while reaffirming its full-year net sales range of $8.485 billion to $8.575 billion along with its operating-margin and free-cash-flow targets. Investors focused on the revenue shortfall and the weakness in the higher-margin DIY business rather than the profit beat, with the stock's steep drop reflecting concern that softening consumer spending poses a sustained headwind to the aftermarket auto parts sector.