AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Sold by Private Management Group Inc.

Private Management Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 25.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,866 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,967 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $15,167,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. Cumberland Partners Ltd raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 25.0% in the 4th quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 375 shares of the company’s stock worth $970,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth about $271,000. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 607 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,569,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 3,290.3% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,051 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,717,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 67.5% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the company’s stock worth $173,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Price Performance

NYSE:AZO traded down $0.62 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $2,961.04. 81,884 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 154,646. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,277.88 and a twelve month high of $3,256.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $3,014.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $2,767.20.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $26.08 by $2.81. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.06% and a net margin of 14.70%. The business had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $24.64 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In related news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total transaction of $21,374,474.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 15,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,992,208.54. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total value of $8,993,280.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,990 shares of company stock worth $50,335,193 in the last 90 days. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on AZO. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. UBS Group raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,100.00 to $3,425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,000.00 to $3,200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $2,950.00 to $3,400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,086.61.

AutoZone Company Profile

AutoZone, Inc retails and distributes automotive replacement parts and accessories in the United States, Mexico, and Brazil. The company provides various products for cars, sport utility vehicles, vans, and light trucks, including new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products.