AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Acquired by Beddow Capital Management Inc.

Beddow Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 420 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. Beddow Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $1,323,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caprock Group LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 1.5% during the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,545,000 after buying an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its position in AutoZone by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 3,762 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,852,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in AutoZone by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 93 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc. raised its position in AutoZone by 0.9% in the third quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc. now owns 7,129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,457,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 0.7% during the third quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 11,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,909,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO opened at $3,166.93 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,510.00 and a 12-month high of $3,256.37. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $3,113.91 and its 200-day moving average is $3,026.55.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the topic of several recent research reports. BNP Paribas raised AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $3,025.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com lowered AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 21st. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $3,200.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,202.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total value of $40,392,950.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,055,777.55. This represents a 48.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. The trade was a 56.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660 in the last quarter. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.