AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Acquired by Gen Wealth Partners Inc

Gen Wealth Partners Inc increased its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 30.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 234 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $749,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 61 shares of the company’s stock valued at $197,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in AutoZone by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 34,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,455,000 after acquiring an additional 7,922 shares during the period. Comerica Bank increased its stake in AutoZone by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 4,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,647,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in AutoZone by 82.6% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $545,033,000 after purchasing an additional 77,015 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 66,016 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,383,000 after purchasing an additional 7,586 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,658.70 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,728.97 and a 52-week high of $3,916.81. The company has a market capitalization of $61.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a 50 day moving average of $3,649.54 and a 200 day moving average of $3,398.25.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). The business had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In related news, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total transaction of $568,000.00. Following the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.08, for a total transaction of $482,810.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,430,682.24. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,521 shares of company stock valued at $42,177,331. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. DA Davidson upgraded shares of AutoZone from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $3,500.00 to $4,192.00 in a research report on Friday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Argus cut shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on AutoZone from $3,490.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,821.91.

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.