AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Purchased by Savant Capital LLC

Savant Capital LLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 837 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $3,107,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Banco Santander S.A. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 98.3% in the 1st quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 829 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,161,000 after purchasing an additional 411 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its stake in AutoZone by 266.7% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $629,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Night Squared LP purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the first quarter valued at $2,860,000. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 11.8% in the first quarter. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC now owns 2,069 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,889,000 after buying an additional 218 shares during the period. Finally, Emerald Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 60.0% in the second quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 224 shares of the company’s stock worth $832,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total transaction of $11,942,502.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 1,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,194,570.80. This represents a 69.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,533 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,020.88, for a total value of $10,184,889.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 55 shares in the company, valued at $221,148.40. The trade was a 97.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 5,693 shares of company stock valued at $23,259,891 over the last three months. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

AutoZone Stock Up 1.1%

NYSE AZO opened at $3,715.69 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.80 billion, a PE ratio of 25.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $4,052.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3,886.73. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $3,036.40 and a 12-month high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $50.52 by ($1.81). The business had revenue of $6.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.26 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 60.49% and a net margin of 13.19%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $51.58 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

AutoZone declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, October 8th that authorizes the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AZO shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,775.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Thursday, September 18th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. DA Davidson set a $4,850.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,544.68.

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.