Van ECK Associates Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Van ECK Associates Corp trimmed its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 7.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,696 shares of the company’s stock after selling 138 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $4,385,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Plancorp LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 3.0% during the third quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 136 shares of the company’s stock worth $345,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Alcosta Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Alcosta Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,188,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $917,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cypress Capital Group grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,057,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,100.00 to $3,425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Barclays increased their target price on AutoZone from $2,779.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,000.00 to $3,200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Wedbush raised their target price on shares of AutoZone from $2,950.00 to $3,400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,086.61.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total transaction of $21,374,474.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 15,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,992,208.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,990 shares of company stock worth $50,335,193. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO opened at $2,952.20 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,051.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2,788.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.13 billion, a PE ratio of 20.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.72. AutoZone, Inc. has a one year low of $2,277.88 and a one year high of $3,256.37.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $26.08 by $2.81. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.06% and a net margin of 14.70%. The firm had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $24.64 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.4 EPS for the current fiscal 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.