AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Sold by Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. reduced its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 7,795 shares of the company’s stock after selling 57 shares during the quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $24,555,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Peak Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,816,000. Verde Capital Management purchased a new stake in AutoZone in the third quarter valued at $1,137,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in AutoZone by 592.0% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 9,210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,012,000 after acquiring an additional 7,879 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 5.6% during the second quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 16,524 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,979,000 after purchasing an additional 869 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BDF Gestion acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the second quarter worth about $3,044,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BNP Paribas upgraded AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $3,025.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a report on Monday, September 30th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,787.00 to $3,500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,202.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,785,166.42. The trade was a 56.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,075.20, for a total transaction of $922,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,613,046.40. The trade was a 2.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,099.38 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $3,111.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $3,029.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.38 billion, a PE ratio of 20.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,510.00 and a 1-year high of $3,256.37.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.25 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $46.46 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.