US Bancorp DE Raises Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,029 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $9,699,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in AutoZone by 482,040.2% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 419,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,343,117,000 after purchasing an additional 419,375 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth about $471,629,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in AutoZone by 186.8% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,544,000 after purchasing an additional 60,483 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP raised its holdings in AutoZone by 542.8% in the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 62,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $200,032,000 after purchasing an additional 52,753 shares during the period. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. raised its holdings in AutoZone by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 163,089 shares of the company’s stock worth $522,211,000 after purchasing an additional 42,776 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AZO shares. Barclays upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. TD Cowen increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on AutoZone in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $3,700.00 target price for the company. Mizuho increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,442.61.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,471.00 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.19, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.70. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,728.97 and a fifty-two week high of $3,519.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3,341.31 and a 200 day moving average of $3,219.44.

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