Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super Invests $30.43 Million in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super bought a new stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 9,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,425,000. Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super owned about 0.06% of AutoZone at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 482,040.2% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at $834,556,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth about $471,629,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 6,083.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 90,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,281,000 after acquiring an additional 89,190 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in AutoZone by 82.6% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $545,033,000 after acquiring an additional 77,015 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZO has been the topic of several research reports. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $3,700.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,875.00 to $4,025.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,634.00 to $3,763.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AutoZone presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,724.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were 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 directly owns 417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,501,200. This trade represents a 79.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.08, for a total transaction of $482,810.88. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,430,682.24. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 6,721 shares of company stock worth $24,609,331. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO opened at $3,656.09 on Monday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,728.97 and a 1-year high of $3,916.81. The stock has a market cap of $61.36 billion, a PE ratio of 24.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $3,556.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,326.80.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its earnings results 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). The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. As a group, equities analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.