American National Bank Has $10.31 Million Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

American National Bank lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 8.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,271 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 251 shares during the quarter. AutoZone comprises about 1.4% of American National Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. American National Bank’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $10,309,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AZO. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 232,194.6% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 731,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,891,963,000 after purchasing an additional 731,413 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth approximately $678,350,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 111.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 335,190 shares of the company’s stock valued at $851,379,000 after buying an additional 176,623 shares in the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 341.5% in the third quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 159,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $404,582,000 after buying an additional 123,208 shares during the period. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC grew its position in AutoZone by 32.0% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 243,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $629,780,000 after buying an additional 58,989 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on AZO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,000.00 to $3,200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on AutoZone from $2,770.00 to $3,025.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Wolfe Research reduced their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,150.00 to $3,000.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. StockNews.com cut shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Wedbush cut their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,105.88.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Jenna M. Bedsole bought 36 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $2,757.10 per share, with a total value of $99,255.60. Following the acquisition, the vice president now owns 36 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $99,255.60. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Jenna M. Bedsole purchased 36 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $2,757.10 per share, for a total transaction of $99,255.60. Following the acquisition, the vice president now owns 36 shares in the company, valued at $99,255.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total transaction of $21,374,474.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 15,357 shares in the company, valued at $48,992,208.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:AZO traded down $17.88 during trading on Friday, hitting $2,990.35. 188,959 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 154,679. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,375.35 and a 1-year high of $3,256.37. The company has a market capitalization of $51.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.71. The business’s 50 day moving average is $2,892.48 and its 200-day moving average is $2,850.41.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The company reported $36.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $35.67 by $1.02. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 54.58% and a net margin of 14.60%. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $34.12 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 151.57 earnings per share for the current year.

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.