AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Stock Position Raised by NFC Investments LLC

NFC Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,213 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. AutoZone comprises approximately 5.6% of NFC Investments LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. NFC Investments LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $19,571,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 354,692.5% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 993,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,293,100,000 after purchasing an additional 993,139 shares during the period. PineStone Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 137.6% during the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 310,043 shares of the company’s stock worth $918,998,000 after buying an additional 179,543 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in AutoZone by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 150,698 shares of the company’s stock worth $446,684,000 after acquiring an additional 3,382 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone in the second quarter valued at about $424,000. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 2,714.8% during the 2nd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 120,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $356,267,000 after acquiring an additional 115,924 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In related news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 56.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total transaction of $40,392,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,055,777.55. This represents a 48.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock valued at $46,225,660 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AZO shares. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $3,025.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Monday, September 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,341.00 to $3,501.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Roth Capital raised AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AutoZone has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,216.44.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO traded up $7.34 on Tuesday, reaching $3,186.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 16,492 shares, compared to its average volume of 138,441. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,510.00 and a 12-month high of $3,256.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.23, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,121.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3,037.24.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $53.31 by ($5.20). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.40% and a negative return on equity of 52.99%. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $46.46 earnings per share. AutoZone’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 earnings per share for the current year.

About AutoZone

AutoZone, Inc retails and distributes automotive replacement parts and accessories in the United States, Mexico, and Brazil. The company provides various products for cars, sport utility vehicles, vans, and light trucks, including new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products.