Philip B. Daniele Sells 2,000 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Stock

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total transaction of $7,600,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $619,401.63. The trade was a 92.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,769.72 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $63.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $3,483.80 and its 200 day moving average is $3,279.56. AutoZone, Inc. has a one year low of $2,728.97 and a one year high of $3,838.00.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $29.11 by ($0.82). The company had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. Analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoZone

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AZO. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 154 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 8 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter valued at about $712,000. Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 11.1% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 271 shares of the company’s stock worth $854,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Qsemble Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter worth about $249,000. Finally, Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd raised its stake in AutoZone by 232.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,252,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AZO shares. Argus downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,525.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup raised their price target on AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,740.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,683.36.

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.