Citigroup Inc. Purchases 8,264 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Citigroup Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 47.3% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 25,734 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,264 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $95,531,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 239,970 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in AutoZone during the 1st quarter valued at about $442,530,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 7.5% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 936,401 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,570,296,000 after acquiring an additional 65,368 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd grew its holdings in AutoZone by 349.5% in the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 74,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $276,190,000 after purchasing an additional 57,849 shares during the period. Finally, Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the second quarter valued at approximately $151,595,000. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Down 0.8%

AZO stock opened at $3,823.08 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.59 billion, a PE ratio of 26.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.37. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $3,036.40 and a 12-month high of $4,388.11. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,993.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,892.71.

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

AutoZone announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, October 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,775.00, for a total value of $1,132,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,570,400. The trade was a 41.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total transaction of $11,942,502.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 1,244 shares in the company, valued at $5,194,570.80. This represents a 69.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,693 shares of company stock worth $23,259,891. 2.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on AutoZone from $4,255.00 to $4,750.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $4,750.00 price objective (down previously from $4,800.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Citigroup cut their target price on AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,775.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Zacks Research lowered AutoZone from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,504.00 to $4,499.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AutoZone has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4,551.56.

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.