Deutsche Bank AG Takes Position in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 68,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $218,836,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at $939,205,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone during the second quarter worth about $572,885,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone during the second quarter worth about $335,157,000. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 492,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,671,323,000 after buying an additional 74,555 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 387.1% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 77,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,832,000 after buying an additional 61,821 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on AutoZone from $4,345.00 to $4,096.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $3,850.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,900.00 to $3,637.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Roth Capital reduced their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,526.00 to $4,023.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,029.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,455 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the vice president directly owned 441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,367,100. This represents a 76.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Brian Hannasch bought 165 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the purchase, the director owned 1,219 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,641,153. The trade was a 15.65% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AZO opened at $3,077.21 on Wednesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,902.20 and a 1 year high of $4,388.11. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $3,061.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,344.23. The firm has a market cap of $50.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.16, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.33.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued 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. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 80.35% and a net margin of 12.40%.The firm had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $35.36 earnings per share. AutoZone’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 150.39 EPS for the current year.

AutoZone announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, June 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are 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.