Foster & Motley Inc. Takes $968,000 Position in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Foster & Motley Inc. acquired a new stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $968,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,938,566,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at about $939,205,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the second quarter worth about $572,885,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the second quarter worth about $335,157,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 492,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,671,323,000 after purchasing an additional 74,555 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZO has been the subject of several analyst reports. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $3,750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $3,700.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,900.00 to $3,600.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,020.00 to $3,605.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on AutoZone from $3,900.00 to $3,637.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,029.43.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.2%

AutoZone stock opened at $3,080.11 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $50.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.18, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.33. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $3,060.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,339.85. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,902.20 and a 52 week high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 26th. The company reported $38.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $36.22 by $1.85. AutoZone had a net margin of 12.40% and a negative return on equity of 80.35%. The company had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.86 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $35.36 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 150.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, June 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,455 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,100.00, for a total transaction of $4,510,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,367,100. This represents a 76.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian Hannasch acquired 165 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $2,987.00 per share, with a total value of $492,855.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 1,219 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,641,153. This represents a 15.65% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Profile

AutoZone, Inc (NYSE: AZO) is a retailer and distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the company supplies a wide range of aftermarket components, maintenance items and accessories for passenger cars, light trucks and commercial vehicles. Its product assortment includes engine parts, electrical components, batteries, brakes, filters, fluids and interior and exterior accessories, supported by inventory management and logistics systems to serve retail customers and professional service providers.

AutoZone serves both do?it?yourself (DIY) consumers and commercial customers such as independent repair shops and service centers.