NewEdge Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 10.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,202 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $3,850,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at $61,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its stake in AutoZone by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total value of $7,600,020.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $619,401.63. This trade represents a 92.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total value of $568,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $177,500. This trade represents a 76.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 6,721 shares of company stock worth $24,609,331 over the last ninety days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,634.00 to $3,763.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Argus lowered AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, DA Davidson upgraded AutoZone from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $3,500.00 to $4,192.00 in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,724.00.

AutoZone Stock Performance

AZO opened at $3,601.29 on Monday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,728.97 and a 1-year high of $3,916.81. The company has a 50-day moving average of $3,573.52 and a 200-day moving average of $3,343.71. The company has a market capitalization of $60.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.06, a PEG 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 the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.