Advance Auto Parts Investor Meets Mixed Appeals Court on Intent

Advance Auto Parts Inc. might not be out of the woods from investor’s fraud allegations that former executives hid improper accounting practices to boost margins during a turnaround effort.

The US Court of Appeal for the Fourth Circuit didn’t give a clear signal during oral arguments Wednesday on whether it would revive some or any of the investor’s dismissed lawsuit against the auto repair company. The judges pushed the parties on whether the investor sufficiently alleged that executives knew about issues regarding accounting of vendor credits or if the errors were so bad that they alone supported the standard for ...