CENTRAL TRUST Co Lowers Stock Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

CENTRAL TRUST Co cut its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 3.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 106 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4 shares during the quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $423,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 42.9% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tandem Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Tandem Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the company’s stock worth $279,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total transaction of $7,600,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $619,401.63. This represents a 92.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Domingo Hurtado sold 4,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,660.00, for a total transaction of $17,568,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 159 shares in the company, valued at $581,940. This trade represents a 96.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 36,912 shares of company stock valued at $136,901,262. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AutoZone Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,599.90 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,801.49 and a 12-month high of $3,916.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $3,698.95 and its 200 day moving average is $3,518.49.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The company reported $35.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $37.07 by ($1.71). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.07% and a net margin of 13.56%. The firm had revenue of $4.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $36.69 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Roth Capital set a $4,135.00 price objective on AutoZone and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $4,100.00 price target (up previously from $3,850.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Argus downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $4,200.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,072.24.

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.