LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Raises Stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. raised its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 19.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 884 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 146 shares during the quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $2,831,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its holdings in AutoZone by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at $66,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,484.56 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $3,336.73 and a 200 day moving average of $3,217.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.70. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,728.97 and a 12 month high of $3,500.00.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $33.69 by ($1.17). The company had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $32.55 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on AZO. Guggenheim upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Argus upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,560.00 to $3,678.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Mizuho upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,450.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,442.61.

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.