Cigna Investments Inc. New Lowers Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Cigna Investments Inc. New trimmed its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 177 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4 shares during the quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $557,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 0.9% in the third quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 12,807 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,343,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV raised its holdings in AutoZone by 36.1% in the 3rd quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 2,705 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,527,000 after acquiring an additional 718 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its position in AutoZone by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,903,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA bought a new position in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $227,000. Finally, Great Diamond Partners LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone during the 3rd quarter valued at $337,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AZO. Evercore ISI upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,300.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Roth Capital upgraded shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,202.71.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total transaction of $40,392,950.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,055,777.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE AZO opened at $2,981.19 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,491.50 and a 52 week high of $3,256.37. The company has a market capitalization of $50.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.70. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $3,119.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,012.20.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $53.31 by ($5.20). The firm had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.25 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.40% and a negative return on equity of 52.99%. AutoZone’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $46.46 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 EPS for the current year.

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.