AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Acquired by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,544 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 566 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $19,506,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. LGT Capital Partners LTD. grew its position in AutoZone by 32.2% in the 4th quarter. LGT Capital Partners LTD. now owns 27,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,458,000 after buying an additional 6,630 shares during the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC grew its position in AutoZone by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 1,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,398,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC grew its position in AutoZone by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 143 shares of the company’s stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. grew its position in AutoZone by 59.1% in the 4th quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 1,292 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,328,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in AutoZone by 42,900.0% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 430 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,112,000 after buying an additional 429 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AZO. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $2,770.00 to $3,025.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,000.00 to $3,200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,363.00 to $3,523.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,086.61.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total transaction of $21,374,474.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 15,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,992,208.54. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other AutoZone news, VP Eric S. Gould sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,200.00, for a total value of $6,720,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 910 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,912,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total value of $21,374,474.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 15,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,992,208.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,990 shares of company stock valued at $50,335,193. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Price Performance

NYSE AZO opened at $2,963.27 on Tuesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,277.88 and a 12 month high of $3,256.37. The company has a 50-day moving average of $3,010.24 and a 200-day moving average of $2,764.30. The company has a market cap of $51.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.70.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $26.08 by $2.81. The firm had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.32 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.70% and a negative return on equity of 56.06%. The company’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $24.64 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.4 EPS for the current 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.