Aviva PLC Reduces Stock Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Aviva PLC trimmed its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,970 shares of the company’s stock after selling 193 shares during the period. Aviva PLC owned 0.06% of AutoZone worth $31,924,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at $21,506,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth $2,879,000. Pitcairn Co. lifted its position in AutoZone by 46.5% in the fourth quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 1,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,846,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in AutoZone by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,703,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 371 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total transaction of $7,600,020.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $619,401.63. This represents a 92.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total value of $568,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $177,500. The trade was a 76.19 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 6,721 shares of company stock worth $24,609,331. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on AutoZone from $3,700.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Mkm increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,634.00 to $3,763.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,724.00.

AutoZone Price Performance

NYSE AZO opened at $3,654.02 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $3,531.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,304.99. The company has a market capitalization of $61.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.41, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,728.97 and a 1-year high of $3,916.81.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $29.11 by ($0.82). The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. On average, research analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone Company Profile

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.