Mechanics Bank Trust Department Buys New Shares in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 75 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $240,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock worth $490,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in AutoZone by 4.1% during the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 101 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 710 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,237,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 95 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 84 shares of the company’s stock worth $265,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.8 %

AZO stock opened at $3,221.06 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $54.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,222.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,136.66. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,658.18 and a 12-month high of $3,416.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly 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). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. The business had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $32.55 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 153.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of AutoZone in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $3,700.00 price target on the stock. Argus upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,560.00 to $3,678.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Roth Capital raised AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $3,025.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,429.84.

AutoZone Company 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.