JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has Lowered Expectations for AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Stock Price

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) had its target price lowered by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $4,300.00 to $3,850.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 26.07% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Tuesday. Mizuho increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,550.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. UBS Group set a $4,800.00 price target on AutoZone in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Argus raised shares of AutoZone from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $4,325.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $3,700.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,099.83.

AutoZone Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:AZO traded down $46.36 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $3,053.75. 20,426 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 191,540. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $3,448.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3,579.65. The company has a market cap of $50.32 billion, a PE ratio of 21.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.43. AutoZone has a 12-month low of $3,001.00 and a 12-month high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 26th. The company reported $38.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $36.22 by $1.85. The firm had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.86 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 72.31% and a net margin of 12.47%.AutoZone’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $35.36 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that AutoZone will post 149.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, Director Earl G. Graves, Jr. sold 50 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,478.72, for a total transaction of $173,936.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,826,568.64. This represents a 1.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of AutoZone

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,797,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,711,912,000 after acquiring an additional 26,544 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in AutoZone by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 492,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,671,323,000 after purchasing an additional 74,555 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in AutoZone by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 387,042 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,312,654,000 after buying an additional 7,390 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in AutoZone in the fourth quarter worth approximately $939,205,000. Finally, PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 269,173 shares of the company’s stock worth $912,900,000 after purchasing an additional 3,868 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting AutoZone

Here are the key news stories impacting AutoZone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AutoZone reported fiscal Q3 EPS of $38.07, ahead of consensus estimates, and revenue rose 8.4% year over year to $4.84 billion, with same-store sales up 3.9% companywide and 4.1% domestically. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Domestic growth and commercial expansion remained strong, and management said the repair business stayed resilient even as consumers cut back elsewhere. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: AutoZone announced a partnership with Google Cloud, which could support longer-term operational and digital initiatives, but it was not the main driver of the stock move. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analysts cut price targets after the report, including BMO Capital Markets to $4,000 and Robert W. Baird to $3,600, signaling some caution but still implying upside from recent levels. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: The stock fell sharply after the company missed revenue expectations, and multiple reports pointed to margin pressure, including a non-cash LIFO impact, as well as softer international results. Article Title

AutoZone Company 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.