AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Acquired by Stegent Equity Advisors Inc.

Stegent Equity Advisors Inc. grew its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 5.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 119 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6 shares during the period. Stegent Equity Advisors Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $442,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 30.0% in the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 13 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.2% in the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the company’s stock valued at $938,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. One Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in AutoZone by 3.6% during the first quarter. One Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the company’s stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC grew its holdings in AutoZone by 2.5% during the first quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 121 shares of the company’s stock worth $461,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Finally, Flputnam Investment Management Co. grew its holdings in AutoZone by 3.2% during the first quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 96 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on AZO. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $4,750.00 target price (down from $4,800.00) on shares of AutoZone in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered AutoZone from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,544.68.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,533 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,020.88, for a total value of $10,184,889.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 55 shares in the company, valued at $221,148.40. This trade represents a 97.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total value of $11,942,502.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 1,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,194,570.80. This trade represents a 69.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of AZO opened at $3,801.30 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,980.10 and a 12 month high of $4,388.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $4,141.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3,876.96. The firm has a market cap of $63.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.40.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $50.52 by ($1.81). AutoZone had a net margin of 13.19% and a negative return on equity of 60.49%. The business had revenue of $6.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $51.58 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

AutoZone declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, October 8th that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.