LGT Capital Partners LTD. Decreases Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

LGT Capital Partners LTD. trimmed its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 27,105 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,835 shares during the quarter. AutoZone makes up about 3.3% of LGT Capital Partners LTD.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. LGT Capital Partners LTD.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $86,790,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,717,000 after purchasing an additional 6,898 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in AutoZone by 186.8% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,544,000 after purchasing an additional 60,483 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in AutoZone by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 34,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,455,000 after acquiring an additional 7,922 shares during the last quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,642 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,460,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 592.0% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 9,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,012,000 after acquiring an additional 7,879 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total transaction of $568,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 50 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $177,500. This trade represents a 76.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AutoZone Price Performance

AZO stock opened at $3,620.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.76 billion, a PE ratio of 24.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50-day moving average is $3,365.96 and its 200-day moving average is $3,229.85. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,728.97 and a 1 year high of $3,636.96.

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 the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AZO. DA Davidson boosted their price target on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,634.00 to $3,763.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,525.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,646.62.

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.