AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Receives Average Recommendation of "Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• AutoZone, Inc. has received a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from twenty-three analysts, with an average 1-year price target of $4,087.00.
• The company's CFO, Jamere Jackson, recently sold 2,612 shares, decreasing his ownership by 85.95%, while total insider sales over the past ninety days amounted to $126 million.
• Despite reporting lower earnings per share of $35.36 compared to the consensus estimate of $37.07, AutoZone's revenue for the quarter grew by 5.4% year-over-year.

Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Buy" by the twenty-three analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $4,087.00.

Several brokerages have weighed in on AZO. Truist Financial set a $3,995.00 target price on AutoZone in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AutoZone from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Evercore ISI set a $3,950.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,830.00 to $4,350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,192.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoZone news, CFO Jamere Jackson sold 2,612 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,728.05, for a total transaction of $9,737,666.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 427 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,591,877.35. The trade was a 85.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,875.90, for a total transaction of $11,627,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 2,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,337,007.50. This represents a 50.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,862 shares of company stock worth $126,058,789 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoZone

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in AutoZone by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 111 shares of the company's stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth about $355,000. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in AutoZone by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 3,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,522,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in AutoZone by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 89,385 shares of the company's stock valued at $286,210,000 after buying an additional 6,686 shares during the last quarter. Finally, F M Investments LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $247,000. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $4,059.42 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $68.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.38. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $3,731.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3,637.60. AutoZone has a one year low of $2,898.57 and a one year high of $4,094.69.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The company reported $35.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $37.07 by ($1.71). The firm had revenue of $4.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.41 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 13.56% and a negative return on equity of 56.07%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $36.69 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that AutoZone will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.