AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Stock Position Lowered by Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 119 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6 shares during the quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $308,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AZO. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Rock Creek Group LP purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. First Capital Advisors Group LLC. purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, MUFG Americas Holdings Corp increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 166.7% during the 3rd quarter. MUFG Americas Holdings Corp now owns 16 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total transaction of $21,374,474.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 15,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,992,208.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 15,990 shares of company stock valued at $50,335,193. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,100.00 to $3,425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,346.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com lowered shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $2,779.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,086.61.

AutoZone Price Performance

NYSE AZO opened at $2,973.17 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.70. The company’s fifty day moving average is $2,998.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2,754.16. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,277.88 and a 52-week high of $3,256.37.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $26.08 by $2.81. The company had revenue of $3.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.32 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.70% and a negative return on equity of 56.06%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $24.64 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 151.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone 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.