AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Purchased by Nisa Investment Advisors LLC

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 6.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,000 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 355 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $22,273,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the first quarter valued at $27,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in AutoZone in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in AutoZone by 66.7% in the 1st quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone in the 2nd quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the first quarter valued at about $44,000. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AZO shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on AutoZone from $4,000.00 to $4,700.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,800.00 to $4,700.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,200.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Roth Capital restated a “buy” rating and issued a $4,750.00 price target (down from $4,800.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,544.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In related news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,533 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,020.88, for a total value of $10,184,889.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 55 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,148.40. The trade was a 97.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total transaction of $11,942,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,244 shares in the company, valued at $5,194,570.80. This represents a 69.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AutoZone Price Performance

AZO opened at $3,801.30 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $4,141.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,879.18. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,980.10 and a fifty-two week high of $4,388.11. The company has a market capitalization of $63.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.40.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 earnings per share 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 net margin of 13.19% and a negative return on equity of 60.49%. AutoZone’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $51.58 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, October 8th that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

AutoZone Company 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.