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

Foster & Motley Inc. purchased a new position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $968,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter worth $25,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in AutoZone during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AutoZone by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 50.0% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 9 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Finally, Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on AutoZone from $3,900.00 to $3,600.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,000.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $3,700.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $3,700.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,029.43.

AutoZone Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,080.11 on Thursday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,902.20 and a 12-month high of $4,388.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,060.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3,339.85.

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

AutoZone declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, June 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

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