Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Has $6.70 Million Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,127 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $6,700,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 354,692.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 993,419 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,293,100,000 after purchasing an additional 993,139 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in AutoZone by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 382,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,202,596,000 after buying an additional 6,226 shares in the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 137.6% in the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 310,043 shares of the company’s stock worth $918,998,000 after purchasing an additional 179,543 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in AutoZone by 564.2% during the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 152,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,338,000 after buying an additional 129,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 2.3% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 150,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $446,684,000 after acquiring an additional 3,382 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Price Performance

AutoZone stock opened at $3,111.17 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.78, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,112.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,017.76. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,510.00 and a fifty-two week high of $3,256.37.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $53.31 by ($5.20). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The firm had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $46.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AZO shares. Guggenheim raised their price target on AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Mizuho lifted their price target on AutoZone from $3,280.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $3,634.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,787.00 to $3,500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,202.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total transaction of $40,392,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,055,777.55. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

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.