PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Reduces Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. cut its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 9.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,149 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,456 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $135,921,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 50.0% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 15 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the period. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 3rd quarter worth about $47,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter worth about $50,000. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,300.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $3,025.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a report on Monday, September 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,202.71.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. The trade was a 56.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,075.20, for a total transaction of $922,560.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,613,046.40. This represents a 2.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,880 shares of company stock valued at $46,225,660 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,106.91 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $3,113.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,027.64. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,510.00 and a 52-week high of $3,256.37. The company has a market cap of $52.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.75, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $53.31 by ($5.20). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The firm had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $46.46 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.