SG Americas Securities LLC Purchases 13,933 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 1,226.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,069 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 13,933 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC owned approximately 0.09% of AutoZone worth $51,107,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in AutoZone in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 600.0% during the third quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 7 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 97 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,341.99, for a total transaction of $324,173.03. Following the sale, the director directly owned 3,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,910,852.36. The trade was a 2.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 5,910 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,700.00, for a total transaction of $21,867,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 2,627 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,719,900. This represents a 69.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,447 shares of company stock worth $34,179,923. 2.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AZO. Wolfe Research cut AutoZone from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,811.00 to $4,268.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,550.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Roth Mkm lowered their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,650.00 to $4,526.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,200.00 to $4,300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,312.13.

AutoZone Stock Performance

NYSE AZO opened at $3,346.50 on Wednesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $3,210.72 and a 52 week high of $4,388.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $3,650.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,758.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.44, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.41.

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

About AutoZone

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.