Tuesday Ticker: June 8, 2021
Toronto, Ontario — In this week’s Tuesday Ticker, Advanced Auto Parts marks a record-breaking Q1; Canadians prepare their summer road trip plans and Tesla marks a million Cybertruck reservations.
Advanced advances
Advanced Auto Parts has marked a record-breaking quarter with net sales increased 23.4 percent to US$3.3 billion and 24.7 percent increases in same-store sales.
“In the first quarter of 2021, we delivered record-breaking sales growth across our business, as both DIY and professional customers turned to Advance for their automotive needs amid a strong industry backdrop,” said Tom Greco, president and chief executive officer. “Our commitment and actions to protect the financial strength of the business during the pandemic resulted in first-quarter free cash flow of $259 million.
“In addition, we returned $204 million to our shareholders through the combination of share repurchases and our quarterly cash dividend of $0.25 per share,” said Greco in an online press release.
Advance operates 4,793 stores and 178 Worldpac branches in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The company also serves 1,285 independently owned Carquest branded stores across these locations and several other countries.
Hit the roads
Canadian drivers are set to hit the road in droves once COVID- related travel restrictions are lifted, according to a new Leger survey for the Tire and Rubber Association of Canada (TRAC).
The survey finds that 61 percent of drivers are planning a summer road trip or a drive to a vacation destination. Among younger drivers aged 18 to 34 and 35 to 44, that number climbs to 70 percent and 72 percent respectively.
Not surprisingly, COVID-19 has had a major impact on summer driving intentions:
- 60 percent of drivers say the restrictions imposed by the pandemic had a big influence on their decision to take a vacation involving driving this summer.
- 44 percent of those not planning a road trip cite COVID fears as the reason, while 24 percent say their summer vacation plans do not involve driving and 17 percent say they cannot afford a vacation because of pandemic-related financial hardship.
The findings also suggest a significant number of motorists neglected their tires during the pandemic. Almost two-in-ten drivers (18 percent) say their tire pressures have not been checked at all in the past year. This percentage rises to 25 percent for drivers aged 18 to 34 and 27 percent among those 35 to 44.
Tesla runneth over
Tesla has reportedly garnered more than one million Cybertruck reservations, according to Drive Tesla Canada.
Drive Tesla Canada tracks Cybertruck orders by trim options via its reservation tracker. When all the options are added up, the organization says Tesla could have more than one million orders and US$63 billion in revenue heading its way.
According to Drive Tesla Canada, Try-A-Tesla, a dealership in Miami, Florida, has reserved 300 Tesla Cybertrucks—which could theoretically make him US$600k on paper.
“I reserved it at US$8,000, and now it’s US$10,000—two thousand each truck.”
Drive Tesla Canada has noted that these numbers could change, and are likely overinflated due to people placing multiple reservations in an attempt to secure a single vehicle. Once production and deliveries ensue, those numbers could change.
The article assumes a cancellation rate of 50 percent—but even if that number does ring true, Tesla will still have 500,000 Cybertruck orders and more than US$30 billion in revenue.
