Bangor Savings Bank Acquires 294 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Bangor Savings Bank boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 639.1% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 340 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the period. Bangor Savings Bank’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $962,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the second quarter worth about $29,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 9 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Tacita Capital Inc acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,637.00 to $3,400.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Oppenheimer set a $3,400.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $3,698.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Finally, Roth Capital cut their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,023.00 to $3,850.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,710.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, VP Dennis LeRiche sold 1,455 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,100.00, for a total value of $4,510,500.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 441 shares in the company, valued at $1,367,100. This trade represents a 76.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Stock Up 3.3%

Shares of NYSE:AZO traded up $93.17 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $2,900.90. 287,039 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 265,967. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $2,959.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,155.87. AutoZone, Inc. has a one year low of $2,730.65 and a one year high of $4,170.00. The company has a market cap of $47.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.40.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, September 22nd. The company reported $56.05 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $55.51. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 90.08% and a net margin of 12.65%.The firm had revenue of $6.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $48.71 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 172.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 16th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

AutoZone Profile

AutoZone, Inc is a specialty retailer of automotive replacement parts, accessories and maintenance products. The company serves do-it-yourself customers as well as professional automotive repair shops, offering products such as batteries, brakes, filters, engine components, tools, fluids and other vehicle parts.

In addition to its retail stores, AutoZone provides commercial sales and delivery services for professional repair businesses. The company also operates ALLDATA, which offers automotive diagnostic, repair and shop-management software and information services to repair professionals.

Founded in 1979 and headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, AutoZone operates primarily in the United States, with additional stores and operations in Mexico and Brazil.