D Orazio & Associates Inc. Makes New $217,000 Investment in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

D Orazio & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 69 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $217,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 42,900.0% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 430 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,112,000 after buying an additional 429 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in AutoZone by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $544,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its stake in AutoZone by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 30 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsinvest Investeringsforvaltning purchased a new stake in AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at $1,272,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Down 1.8 %

AutoZone stock traded down $53.24 during trading on Thursday, reaching $2,930.87. The company had a trading volume of 94,144 shares, compared to its average volume of 149,739. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,375.35 and a 52 week high of $3,256.37. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $2,872.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $2,888.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The company reported $36.69 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $35.67 by $1.02. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.29 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 54.58% and a net margin of 14.60%. AutoZone’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $34.12 EPS. On average, analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 151.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on AutoZone from $3,100.00 to $3,038.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Barclays cut their target price on AutoZone from $3,100.00 to $3,024.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Truist Financial cut their target price on AutoZone from $3,523.00 to $3,394.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $3,200.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on AutoZone from $3,278.00 to $3,275.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,112.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Jenna M. Bedsole purchased 36 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $2,757.10 per share, with a total value of $99,255.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president now directly owns 36 shares in the company, valued at $99,255.60. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.50% 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.