Sandy Spring Bank Has $1.49 Million Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Sandy Spring Bank boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 6,528.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 464 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 457 shares during the quarter. Sandy Spring Bank’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $1,486,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in AutoZone by 482,040.2% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 419,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,343,117,000 after acquiring an additional 419,375 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth $471,629,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its stake in AutoZone by 6,083.9% during the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 90,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,281,000 after acquiring an additional 89,190 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 186.8% in the third 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. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at $189,483,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AZO. TD Cowen raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Citigroup raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,490.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $3,700.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AutoZone currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,651.91.

AutoZone Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of AZO opened at $3,569.96 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,728.97 and a 1 year high of $3,704.43. The stock has a market cap of $59.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $3,426.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,254.98.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total transaction of $5,670,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 417 shares in the company, valued at $1,501,200. The trade was a 79.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 136 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.08, for a total value of $482,810.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 403 shares in the company, valued at $1,430,682.24. This trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,871 shares of company stock worth $6,720,811 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% 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.