AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $3,437.63 and last traded at $3,413.26, with a volume of 56907 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $3,332.53.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AZO. Mizuho increased their price target on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,450.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Guggenheim upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Redburn Atlantic raised AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,429.84.

AutoZone Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $55.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a 50-day moving average of $3,247.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3,159.59.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $33.69 by ($1.17). The company had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $32.55 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoZone

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,717,000 after acquiring an additional 6,898 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 186.8% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,544,000 after buying an additional 60,483 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 34,808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,455,000 after purchasing an additional 7,922 shares during the period. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,460,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verde Capital Management purchased a new position in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,137,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

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.