AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as low as $2,762.02 and last traded at $2,768.6580, with a volume of 36158 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $2,830.02.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,817.00 to $3,648.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Roth Capital lowered their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,023.00 to $3,850.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. UBS Group set a $3,850.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,400.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AutoZone currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,710.36.

AutoZone Stock Down 1.7%

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $2,969.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3,170.39. The company has a market cap of $45.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.34.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 22nd. The company reported $56.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $55.51. AutoZone had a net margin of 12.65% and a negative return on equity of 90.08%. The firm had revenue of $6.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $48.71 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 173.47 EPS for the current year.

AutoZone declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, June 16th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Dennis 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 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AutoZone

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the second quarter valued at $3,938,566,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its stake in AutoZone by 247,417.8% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 249,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $798,963,000 after purchasing an additional 249,892 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in AutoZone during the second quarter worth about $572,885,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 11,577.6% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 141,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $450,838,000 after buying an additional 139,858 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the 2nd quarter worth about $38,604,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Company Profile

AutoZone, Inc is a specialty retailer of automotive replacement parts, accessories and maintenance products. The company serves do-it-yourself customers as well as professional automotive repair shops, offering products such as batteries, brakes, filters, engine components, tools, fluids and other vehicle parts.

In addition to its retail stores, AutoZone provides commercial sales and delivery services for professional repair businesses. The company also operates ALLDATA, which offers automotive diagnostic, repair and shop-management software and information services to repair professionals.

Founded in 1979 and headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, AutoZone operates primarily in the United States, with additional stores and operations in Mexico and Brazil.