Sheets Smith Wealth Management Sells 10 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Sheets Smith Wealth Management decreased its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 5.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 175 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10 shares during the quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $667,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in AutoZone by 435,031.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 770,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,936,535,000 after acquiring an additional 770,005 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 482,040.2% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 419,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,343,117,000 after purchasing an additional 419,375 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at about $834,556,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its stake in AutoZone by 6,083.9% in the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 90,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,281,000 after purchasing an additional 89,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in AutoZone by 82.6% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,033,000 after purchasing an additional 77,015 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Down 3.5%

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,579.81 on Wednesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,801.49 and a twelve month high of $3,916.81. The stock has a market cap of $60.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.23, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.40. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $3,698.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,529.36.

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

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Domingo Hurtado sold 4,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,660.00, for a total value of $17,568,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $581,940. This represents a 96.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of AutoZone 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $619,401.63. This represents a 92.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 37,662 shares of company stock worth $139,599,109. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI set a $3,950.00 price target on AutoZone in a report on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $4,000.00 target price (up from $3,750.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,850.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Argus downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,830.00 to $4,350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Two investment 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, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $4,072.24.

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.