Lafayette Investments Inc. Has $11.71 Million Position in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Lafayette Investments Inc. reduced its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,155 shares of the company’s stock after selling 104 shares during the quarter. AutoZone comprises 2.4% of Lafayette Investments Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $11,712,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AZO. AlphaCore Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Saudi Central Bank bought a new position in shares of AutoZone in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 66.7% in the first quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the second quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 1st quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on AZO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,894.00 to $4,090.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $4,200.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on AutoZone from $4,255.00 to $4,750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on AutoZone from $4,000.00 to $4,700.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $4,900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,544.68.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,970.01 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $4,149.60 and a 200-day moving average of $3,867.94. The stock has a market cap of $66.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.40. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,980.10 and a 52-week high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $6.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $51.58 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoZone announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program 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. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,533 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 55 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,148.40. This represents a 97.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,875.90, for a total value of $11,627,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,925 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,337,007.50. This represents a 50.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,393 shares of company stock worth $33,755,091. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone 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.