Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Reduces Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. reduced its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 25.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,995 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,389 shares during the period. AutoZone comprises 0.9% of Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. owned 0.06% of AutoZone worth $32,004,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in AutoZone by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 421,716 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,326,545,000 after buying an additional 7,365 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased 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 acquiring an additional 419,375 shares in the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in AutoZone by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 213,575 shares of the company’s stock worth $683,867,000 after acquiring an additional 13,771 shares during the period. Marshfield Associates raised its stake in AutoZone by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Marshfield Associates now owns 169,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $534,204,000 after acquiring an additional 796 shares during the period. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 163,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $522,211,000 after purchasing an additional 42,776 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total transaction of $568,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 50 shares in the company, valued at $177,500. This trade represents a 76.19 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.08, for a total transaction of $482,810.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 403 shares in the company, valued at $1,430,682.24. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,871 shares of company stock valued at $6,720,811. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AZO opened at $3,591.60 on Thursday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,728.97 and a 1 year high of $3,704.43. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,420.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3,252.77. The company has a market cap of $60.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.00, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $29.11 by ($0.82). The business had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AZO shares. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $3,700.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group boosted their price target on AutoZone from $3,875.00 to $4,025.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,753.00 to $3,841.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,651.91.

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.