AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Sold by Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC

Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC lowered its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 835 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5 shares during the quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $2,673,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pitcairn Co. raised its position in AutoZone by 46.5% during 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 in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,703,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 51,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,571,000 after buying an additional 6,138 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Down 4.5 %

NYSE AZO opened at $3,654.02 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $3,531.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,301.82. The firm has a market cap of $61.32 billion, a PE ratio of 24.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,728.97 and a 52 week high of $3,916.81.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total transaction of $568,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $177,500. This trade represents a 76.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 2,850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,610.00, for a total transaction of $10,288,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,924 shares in the company, valued at $10,555,640. The trade was a 49.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,721 shares of company stock valued at $24,609,331. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised AutoZone from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $3,044.00 to $3,811.00 in a report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on AutoZone from $3,700.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,490.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AutoZone currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,724.00.

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.