Hilltop Holdings Inc. Buys 508 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Hilltop Holdings Inc. grew its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 503.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 609 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 508 shares during the quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $2,613,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AZO. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC increased its stake in AutoZone by 600.0% in the third quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 7 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new stake in AutoZone during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, AlphaCore Capital LLC lifted its stake in AutoZone by 42.9% during the second quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,490.55 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.84 billion, a PE ratio of 24.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.41. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $3,210.72 and a 1-year high of $4,388.11. The business has a 50-day moving average of $3,654.14 and a 200 day moving average of $3,794.52.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $27.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $27.59 by $0.04. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 72.31% and a net margin of 12.47%.The business had revenue of $4.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $28.29 EPS. AutoZone’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on AutoZone from $4,000.00 to $4,020.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,300.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,800.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,274.00 to $4,345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,200.00 to $4,300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AutoZone has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,312.13.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other news, Director Earl G. Graves, Jr. sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,295.00, for a total value of $823,750.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,102,665. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael A. George bought 145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $3,398.13 per share, for a total transaction of $492,728.85. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,923,341.58. This trade represents a 34.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 9,447 shares of company stock valued at $34,179,923. 2.60% of the stock is currently 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.