Machina Capital S.A.S. Cuts Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Machina Capital S.A.S. trimmed its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 256 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $662,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rock Creek Group LP bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter valued at $43,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, Buck Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new position in AutoZone during the 3rd quarter valued at about $64,000. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of AZO stock traded up $15.50 on Monday, reaching $2,967.70. 116,362 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 151,810. The company has a market capitalization of $51.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.90, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.72. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $3,055.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $2,791.59. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,277.88 and a twelve month high of $3,256.37.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $26.08 by $2.81. The business had revenue of $3.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.32 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.06% and a net margin of 14.70%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $24.64 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Eric S. Gould sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,200.00, for a total value of $6,720,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 910 shares in the company, valued at $2,912,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total value of $21,374,474.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 15,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,992,208.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Eric S. Gould sold 2,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,200.00, for a total value of $6,720,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 910 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,912,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,990 shares of company stock valued at $50,335,193 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AZO shares. Barclays increased their price target on AutoZone from $2,779.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,100.00 to $3,425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Mizuho started coverage on AutoZone in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $3,450.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com downgraded AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,086.61.

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.