Brokerages Set AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Price Target at $3,384.89

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have given a hold recommendation, fifteen have assigned a buy recommendation and three have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $3,384.89.

Several research firms have recently commented on AZO. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,450.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Roth Capital upgraded AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $3,634.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $3,025.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, StockNews.com cut AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 21st.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AZO opened at $3,202.00 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $53.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.39, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $3,183.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3,109.01. AutoZone has a 52-week low of $2,510.00 and a 52-week high of $3,416.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The business had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $32.55 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that AutoZone will post 154.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the business’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 sale, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at $43,055,777.55. The trade was a 48.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 14.3% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 32 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in AutoZone by 4.1% in the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in AutoZone by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 710 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,237,000 after buying an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IVC Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 95 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.