Retirement Systems of Alabama Decreases Stake in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Retirement Systems of Alabama lowered its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,590 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $13,327,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 0.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,759,862 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,709,967,000 after purchasing an additional 13,643 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 7.5% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 936,401 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,570,296,000 after acquiring an additional 65,368 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 7.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 349,317 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,331,870,000 after acquiring an additional 24,701 shares during the period. PineStone Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 3.9% in the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 281,693 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,045,709,000 after acquiring an additional 10,456 shares during the period. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 7,358.8% in the second quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 243,231 shares of the company’s stock worth $902,929,000 after acquiring an additional 239,970 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,775.00, for a total value of $1,132,500.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 416 shares in the company, valued at $1,570,400. The trade was a 41.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total value of $11,942,502.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 1,244 shares in the company, valued at $5,194,570.80. The trade was a 69.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 5,693 shares of company stock worth $23,259,891 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price objective on AutoZone from $4,925.00 to $4,800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Citigroup cut their price objective on AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,775.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Erste Group Bank lowered AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $4,900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,544.68.

AutoZone Stock Performance

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,674.69 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $4,104.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3,883.12. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,980.10 and a 52-week high of $4,388.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.12 billion, a PE ratio of 25.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.40.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $50.52 by ($1.81). AutoZone had a net margin of 13.19% and a negative return on equity of 60.49%. The business had revenue of $6.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $51.58 earnings per share. AutoZone’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, October 8th that allows the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

AutoZone 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.