Short Interest in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Declines By 8.7%

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 425,100 shares, a decrease of 8.7% from the September 30th total of 465,500 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 120,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.5 days. Currently, 2.5% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,166.42. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other AutoZone news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,166.42. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,075.20, for a total value of $922,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at $42,613,046.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,880 shares of company stock valued at $46,225,660. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AutoZone

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 50.0% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 15 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter worth $47,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 33.3% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 28 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 7 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

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on AZO shares. Citigroup lowered their target price on AutoZone from $3,787.00 to $3,500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $3,634.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Guggenheim raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $3,200.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,202.71.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AZO traded down $8.98 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $3,009.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 147,134 shares, compared to its average volume of 138,803. The stock has a market cap of $51.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.70. AutoZone has a 12 month low of $2,463.45 and a 12 month high of $3,256.37. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,122.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3,011.66.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $53.31 by ($5.20). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $46.46 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone will post 157.99 EPS for the current 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.