Aristides Capital LLC Buys 50 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Aristides Capital LLC raised its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 12.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 450 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Aristides Capital LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $1,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 25.0% in the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,654.02 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,728.97 and a 1 year high of $3,916.81. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $3,531.36 and its 200-day moving average is $3,303.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.41, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AZO shares. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $3,700.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,875.00 to $4,025.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,525.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,724.00.

Insider Activity

In other AutoZone news, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $177,500. The trade was a 76.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total transaction of $5,670,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 417 shares in the company, valued at $1,501,200. This trade represents a 79.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 6,721 shares of company stock valued at $24,609,331 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company 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.