AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Purchased by Pitcairn Co.

Pitcairn Co. raised its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 46.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,201 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 381 shares during the quarter. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $3,846,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its position in AutoZone by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its position in shares of AutoZone by 25.0% during the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,811.59 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $3,515.75 and a 200-day moving average of $3,294.29. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,728.97 and a 52-week high of $3,842.82. The stock has a market cap of $63.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). The business had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total transaction of $568,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares in the company, valued at $177,500. This represents a 76.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total value of $7,600,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $619,401.63. The trade was a 92.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 6,721 shares of company stock worth $24,609,331 in the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AZO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Argus downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,875.00 to $4,025.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on AutoZone from $3,490.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AutoZone presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,724.00.

AutoZone 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.