UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Decreases Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd trimmed its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 34.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,229 shares of the company’s stock after selling 640 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $3,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in AutoZone by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of AutoZone in the fourth quarter worth approximately $61,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 25.0% in the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZO opened at $3,769.72 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $63.26 billion, a PE ratio of 25.19, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $3,483.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $3,278.52. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,728.97 and a 1-year high of $3,838.00.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total value of $7,600,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $619,401.63. This trade represents a 92.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total value of $5,670,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,501,200. The trade was a 79.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 6,721 shares of company stock worth $24,609,331 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Truist Financial upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,753.00 to $3,841.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Argus lowered AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,683.36.

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.