Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC Grows Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 246.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 52 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $167,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter worth $36,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter worth about $47,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its holdings in AutoZone by 25.0% in the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the third quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in AutoZone by 17.9% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 33 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 5 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Performance

AZO stock opened at $3,207.66 on Thursday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,575.00 and a 52-week high of $3,416.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.43, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $3,219.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $3,129.05.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). The business had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $32.55 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 154.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on AZO shares. StockNews.com cut shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 21st. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Argus increased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,560.00 to $3,678.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,501.00 to $3,753.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,429.84.

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.