AutoZone, Inc. $AZO is Vision Financial Markets LLC’s 3rd Largest Position

Vision Financial Markets LLC raised its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,938 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5 shares during the quarter. AutoZone makes up approximately 6.8% of Vision Financial Markets LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Vision Financial Markets LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $7,194,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in AutoZone by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,759,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,709,967,000 after purchasing an additional 13,643 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 7.5% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 936,401 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,570,296,000 after buying an additional 65,368 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 7.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 349,317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,331,870,000 after buying an additional 24,701 shares during the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 3.9% in the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 281,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,045,709,000 after buying an additional 10,456 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt raised its stake in AutoZone by 7,358.8% during the 2nd quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 243,231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $902,929,000 after acquiring an additional 239,970 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on AZO shares. Zacks Research downgraded AutoZone from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Citigroup cut their price target on AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,775.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Truist Financial cut their price target on AutoZone from $4,504.00 to $4,499.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Raymond James Financial cut their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,800.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,000.00 to $4,700.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,544.68.

AutoZone Stock Performance

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,821.31 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $4,137.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3,881.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.38, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.40. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,980.10 and a 1 year high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $50.52 by ($1.81). The company had revenue of $6.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.26 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 13.19% and a negative return on equity of 60.49%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $51.58 EPS. On average, analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

AutoZone declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, October 8th that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.