Blair William & Co. IL Sells 352 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Blair William & Co. IL decreased its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 23.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,141 shares of the company’s stock after selling 352 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $3,655,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in AutoZone by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at about $61,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 25.0% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $67,000. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,821.72 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $64.14 billion, a PE ratio of 25.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,728.97 and a 52-week high of $3,842.82. The business’s fifty day moving average is $3,495.81 and its 200 day moving average is $3,285.75.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings results 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). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on AZO shares. Mizuho lifted their price target on AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,700.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,683.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total value of $5,670,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,501,200. This represents a 79.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total transaction of $568,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares in the company, 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 sold a total of 6,721 shares of company stock worth $24,609,331 over the last three months. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.