Alcosta Capital Management Inc. Grows Stock Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Alcosta Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,251 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5 shares during the period. AutoZone accounts for about 2.3% of Alcosta Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Alcosta Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $4,006,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 465 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,489,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in AutoZone by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 254 shares of the company’s stock worth $813,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Nutshell Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,770,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 41.1% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 73,044 shares of the company’s stock valued at $233,718,000 after purchasing an additional 21,266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedbush Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth about $355,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AZO. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,490.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on AutoZone from $3,753.00 to $3,841.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on AutoZone from $3,525.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $3,700.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,724.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 2,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,610.00, for a total transaction of $10,288,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,555,640. This represents a 49.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total transaction of $5,670,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,501,200. This trade represents a 79.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 6,721 shares of company stock valued at $24,609,331 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZO opened at $3,654.02 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $3,531.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,303.38. The company has a market cap of $61.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.41, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54. AutoZone, Inc. has a one year low of $2,728.97 and a one year high of $3,916.81.

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

AutoZone 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.