Visionary Wealth Advisors Makes New Investment in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Visionary Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,905,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. bought a new position in AutoZone during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in AutoZone by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. purchased a new position in AutoZone in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in AutoZone by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 9 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoZone news, Director Brian Hannasch bought 165 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $2,987.00 per share, with a total value of $492,855.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 1,219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,641,153. The trade was a 15.65% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,455 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,100.00, for a total value of $4,510,500.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 441 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,367,100. This represents a 76.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AZO shares. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $3,700.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Truist Financial set a $3,700.00 price objective on AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $4,000.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,029.43.

AutoZone Stock Up 1.7%

AZO opened at $3,008.32 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $3,053.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $3,324.51. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,902.20 and a twelve month high of $4,388.11. The company has a market capitalization of $49.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.68, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.33.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 26th. The company reported $38.07 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $36.22 by $1.85. The company had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.86 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 12.40% and a negative return on equity of 80.35%. AutoZone’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $35.36 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 150.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, June 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

AutoZone Company Profile

AutoZone, Inc (NYSE: AZO) is a retailer and distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the company supplies a wide range of aftermarket components, maintenance items and accessories for passenger cars, light trucks and commercial vehicles. Its product assortment includes engine parts, electrical components, batteries, brakes, filters, fluids and interior and exterior accessories, supported by inventory management and logistics systems to serve retail customers and professional service providers.

AutoZone serves both do‑it‑yourself (DIY) consumers and commercial customers such as independent repair shops and service centers.