AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Purchased by AMF Tjanstepension AB

AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 43.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,285 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,432 shares during the period. AMF Tjanstepension AB’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $41,893,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 111 shares of the company’s stock worth $356,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 132.7% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,845,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB acquired a new position in AutoZone during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,795,000. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 2,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,267,000 after buying an additional 271 shares during the period. Finally, KFG Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 7.8% in the first quarter. KFG Wealth Management LLC now owns 179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $682,000 after buying an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:AZO opened at $4,219.73 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $70.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,980.10 and a 52-week high of $4,388.11. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $4,126.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,840.81.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $50.52 by ($1.81). The company had revenue of $6.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.26 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 60.49% and a net margin of 13.19%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $51.58 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total transaction of $11,942,502.00. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,875.90, for a total value of $11,627,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 2,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,337,007.50. This trade represents a 50.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on AZO. Citigroup reduced their target price on AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,775.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,155.00 to $4,811.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $4,750.00 price objective (down previously from $4,800.00) on shares of AutoZone in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,916.00 to $4,610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,255.00 to $4,750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,538.21.

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.