AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Roth Capital

Roth Capital upgraded shares of AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning, Zacks.com reports. Roth Capital also issued estimates for AutoZone’s Q1 2025 earnings at $32.64 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $30.90 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $37.65 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $38.89 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $36.19 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $41.90 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $65.35 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $181.69 EPS.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on AZO. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $3,200.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $3,025.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,341.00 to $3,501.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,202.71.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,129.16 on Tuesday. AutoZone has a fifty-two week low of $2,375.35 and a fifty-two week high of $3,256.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.46 billion, a PE ratio of 21.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.70. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $3,131.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,007.34.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $53.31 by ($5.20). The company had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.25 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $46.46 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that AutoZone will post 157.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In related news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,785,166.42. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 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 value of $922,560.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,613,046.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoZone

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners increased its position in shares of AutoZone by 1.7% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 382,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,202,596,000 after buying an additional 6,226 shares in the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 137.6% during the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 310,043 shares of the company’s stock worth $918,998,000 after purchasing an additional 179,543 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in AutoZone by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 203,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $643,641,000 after buying an additional 7,988 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in AutoZone by 564.2% in the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 152,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $479,338,000 after purchasing an additional 129,193 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 150,698 shares of the company’s stock worth $446,684,000 after buying an additional 3,382 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.