Swiss National Bank Sells 2,500 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Swiss National Bank cut its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,200 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,500 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned 0.29% of AutoZone worth $206,790,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AZO. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 371,123.0% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 935,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,472,724,000 after buying an additional 935,230 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in AutoZone during the second quarter worth approximately $981,202,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its stake in AutoZone by 277.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 102,567 shares of the company’s stock worth $440,037,000 after acquiring an additional 75,382 shares during the period. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd raised its holdings in AutoZone by 1,185.5% in the 2nd quarter. Evelyn Partners Investment Management Services Ltd now owns 64,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,126,000 after acquiring an additional 59,653 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in AutoZone by 401.2% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,803 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,247,000 after acquiring an additional 41,467 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Stock Performance

NYSE AZO opened at $3,682.67 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $3,627.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,813.72. The stock has a market cap of $61.02 billion, a PE ratio of 25.80, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.41. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $3,210.72 and a fifty-two week high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $27.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $27.59 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.31 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 72.31% and a net margin of 12.47%.AutoZone’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $28.29 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on AutoZone from $4,700.00 to $4,500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on AutoZone from $4,800.00 to $4,600.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Evercore increased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered shares of AutoZone from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,312.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, Director Brian Hannasch acquired 147 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were bought at an average price of $3,393.09 per share, with a total value of $498,784.23. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 962 shares in the company, valued at $3,264,152.58. This trade represents a 18.04% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 97 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,341.99, for a total value of $324,173.03. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,564 shares in the company, valued at $11,910,852.36. This trade represents a 2.65% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have acquired 347 shares of company stock valued at $1,179,256 and have sold 9,447 shares valued at $34,179,923. 2.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Company Profile

AutoZone, Inc (NYSE: AZO) is a retailer and distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the company supplies a wide range of aftermarket components, maintenance items and accessories for passenger cars, light trucks and commercial vehicles. Its product assortment includes engine parts, electrical components, batteries, brakes, filters, fluids and interior and exterior accessories, supported by inventory management and logistics systems to serve retail customers and professional service providers.

AutoZone serves both do‑it‑yourself (DIY) consumers and commercial customers such as independent repair shops and service centers.