AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Price Target Raised to $3,750.00 at Guggenheim

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) had its target price upped by stock analysts at Guggenheim from $3,350.00 to $3,750.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Guggenheim’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 11.53% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the company. Roth Capital upgraded AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. BNP Paribas raised shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,300.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $3,025.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,289.25.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO stock traded up $15.23 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $3,362.39. 28,746 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 139,288. AutoZone has a 1 year low of $2,510.00 and a 1 year high of $3,416.71. The company’s 50 day moving average is $3,137.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3,057.08. The company has a market cap of $56.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its 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). The firm had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $32.55 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that AutoZone will post 155.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 300 shares of AutoZone 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 value of $922,560.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,613,046.40. The trade was a 2.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 56.47 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660 over the last ninety days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoZone

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter worth $36,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of AutoZone by 50.0% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 15 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the period. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter valued at $47,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AutoZone in the third quarter worth $47,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone in the 2nd quarter valued at $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

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.