Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Acquires 168 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 46.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 530 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $2,274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 600.0% during the third quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 7 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, AlphaCore Capital LLC grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 42.9% in the second quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on AZO. DA Davidson set a $4,300.00 price target on AutoZone in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Raymond James Financial lowered their price objective on AutoZone from $4,800.00 to $4,600.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Zacks Research raised AutoZone from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,600.00 to $4,400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,550.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4,318.38.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,715.03 on Thursday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $3,210.72 and a 12-month high of $4,388.11. The company has a market capitalization of $61.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.03, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $3,640.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,810.37.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $27.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $27.59 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 12.47% and a negative return on equity of 72.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $28.29 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Earl G. Graves, Jr. sold 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,295.00, for a total transaction of $823,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,102,665. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 97 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,341.99, for a total value of $324,173.03. Following the sale, the director owned 3,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,910,852.36. This represents a 2.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,447 shares of company stock valued at $34,179,923. Corporate insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Profile

AutoZone, Inc (NYSE: AZO) is a retailer and distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the company supplies a wide range of aftermarket components, maintenance items and accessories for passenger cars, light trucks and commercial vehicles. Its product assortment includes engine parts, electrical components, batteries, brakes, filters, fluids and interior and exterior accessories, supported by inventory management and logistics systems to serve retail customers and professional service providers.

AutoZone serves both do‑it‑yourself (DIY) consumers and commercial customers such as independent repair shops and service centers.