Flputnam Investment Management Co. Acquires 9 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. grew its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 10.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 93 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $240,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. lifted its stake in AutoZone by 4.6% in the first quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. now owns 91 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of AutoZone by 1.3% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $765,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake in AutoZone by 2.9% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 142 shares of the company’s stock worth $361,000 after buying an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 2.0% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. Finally, Plancorp LLC boosted its position in AutoZone by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 136 shares of the company’s stock valued at $345,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AutoZone Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of AZO stock opened at $2,973.17 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,277.88 and a 12-month high of $3,256.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $2,998.95 and its 200 day moving average is $2,754.16.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $26.08 by $2.81. The firm had revenue of $3.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.32 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.06% and a net margin of 14.70%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $24.64 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 151.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AZO shares. UBS Group increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,100.00 to $3,425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,346.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Wedbush increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $2,950.00 to $3,400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,000.00 to $3,200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,086.61.

AutoZone 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.