AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Sold by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. reduced its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 2.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,969 shares of the company’s stock after selling 140 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $18,949,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AZO. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 111 shares of the company’s stock worth $356,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 321 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,028,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,202 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,850,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 138 shares of the company’s stock worth $443,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 50,974 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,214,000 after purchasing an additional 3,009 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $4,200.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Roth Capital set a $4,135.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective 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. Finally, Truist Financial set a $3,995.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $4,101.29.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,875.90, for a total transaction of $11,627,700.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 2,925 shares in the company, valued at $11,337,007.50. This represents a 50.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 27,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,708.93, for a total transaction of $101,995,575.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 8,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,696,515.78. The trade was a 76.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 33,862 shares of company stock valued at $126,058,789. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE:AZO opened at $4,045.32 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $67.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.38. The company’s 50-day moving average is $3,772.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3,675.33. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,898.57 and a 12-month high of $4,094.69.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 27th. The company reported $35.36 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $37.07 by ($1.71). The company had revenue of $4.46 billion for 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 company’s revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $36.69 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.