AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Position Lessened by Resonant Capital Advisors LLC

Resonant Capital Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 1.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,313 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20 shares during the quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $4,874,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 7,358.8% during the second quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 243,231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $902,929,000 after acquiring an additional 239,970 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone in the 1st quarter valued at about $442,530,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 936,401 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,570,296,000 after purchasing an additional 65,368 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its stake in AutoZone by 349.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 74,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $276,190,000 after purchasing an additional 57,849 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its position in AutoZone by 4,484.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 27,185 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,917,000 after purchasing an additional 26,592 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on AZO shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $4,255.00 to $4,750.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on AutoZone from $4,250.00 to $4,500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $4,750.00 price target (down previously from $4,800.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,800.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,544.68.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,801.30 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,980.10 and a 1 year high of $4,388.11. The business’s fifty day moving average is $4,141.67 and its 200-day moving average is $3,876.96. The stock has a market cap of $63.79 billion, a PE ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.40.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $50.52 by ($1.81). The firm had revenue of $6.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.26 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 13.19% and a negative return on equity of 60.49%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $51.58 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoZone declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, October 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,533 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,020.88, for a total transaction of $10,184,889.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 55 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,148.40. This trade represents a 97.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total transaction of $11,942,502.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 1,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,194,570.80. This trade represents a 69.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.