AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $3,445.05 and last traded at $3,424.84, with a volume of 104889 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3,350.21.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on AZO. The Goldman Sachs Group cut AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on AutoZone from $3,501.00 to $3,753.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Roth Capital raised shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,450.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,429.84.

AutoZone Stock Up 0.6 %

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,275.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3,174.59. The company has a market cap of $58.37 billion, a PE ratio of 23.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.70.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $33.69 by ($1.17). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The firm had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $32.55 EPS. AutoZone’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoZone

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,717,000 after purchasing an additional 6,898 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in AutoZone by 186.8% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,544,000 after buying an additional 60,483 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 34,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,455,000 after buying an additional 7,922 shares during the last quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,460,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verde Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,137,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

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.