Erste Asset Management GmbH Takes Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 20,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,379,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 354,692.5% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 993,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,293,100,000 after buying an additional 993,139 shares during the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 137.6% in the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 310,043 shares of the company’s stock valued at $918,998,000 after purchasing an additional 179,543 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the second quarter worth approximately $424,000. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 2,714.8% in the 2nd quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 120,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $356,267,000 after purchasing an additional 115,924 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in AutoZone by 186.8% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,544,000 after buying an additional 60,483 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,038.00 to $3,125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,202.71.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AZO opened at $3,169.54 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $3,121.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3,036.50. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,510.00 and a 1 year high of $3,256.37. The firm has a market cap of $53.57 billion, a PE ratio of 21.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,075.20, for a total transaction of $922,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,613,046.40. This trade represents a 2.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. This represents a 56.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock valued at $46,225,660. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.