111 Shares in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Acquired by Wedbush Securities Inc.

Wedbush Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $355,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in AutoZone by 25.0% in the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AZO shares. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $3,700.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,700.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,724.00.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other news, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 136 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.08, for a total value of $482,810.88. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,430,682.24. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total transaction of $5,670,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,501,200. The trade was a 79.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 6,721 shares of company stock worth $24,609,331 in the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Trading Up 1.7 %

AZO stock opened at $3,559.48 on Thursday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,728.97 and a 12 month high of $3,916.81. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $3,548.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,318.05. The stock has a market cap of $59.74 billion, a PE ratio of 23.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $29.11 by ($0.82). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The company had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

About AutoZone

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.