AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Receives Consensus Rating of "Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• AutoZone, Inc. has a consensus rating of "Buy" from 23 brokerages, with an average 12-month price target of approximately $4,101.29.
• Significant insider transactions occurred, including Chairman William C. Rhodes III selling 27,500 shares, indicating a 76.29% decrease in his position.
• Institutional investors now own 92.74% of AutoZone's stock, with notable increases in holdings from firms like Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC and GAMMA Investing LLC.

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the twenty-three ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $4,101.2857.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AZO. Truist Financial set a $3,995.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $4,100.00 target price (up previously from $3,850.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,740.00 to $4,050.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $3,811.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,060.00 to $4,250.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 27,500 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,708.93, for a total transaction of $101,995,575.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 8,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,696,515.78. The trade was a 76.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 750 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,597.13, for a total transaction of $2,697,847.50. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 406 shares in the company, valued at $1,460,434.78. The trade was a 64.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,250 shares of company stock valued at $116,321,123. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoZone

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in AutoZone by 371,123.0% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 935,482 shares of the company's stock worth $3,472,724,000 after acquiring an additional 935,230 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in AutoZone by 435,031.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 770,182 shares of the company's stock worth $2,936,535,000 after acquiring an additional 770,005 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in AutoZone during the second quarter worth about $981,202,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt boosted its stake in AutoZone by 7,358.8% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone during the first quarter worth about $442,530,000. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.2%

AZO stock opened at $4,205.60 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $3,877.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,725.27. AutoZone has a 12-month low of $2,898.57 and a 12-month high of $4,229.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.46, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.41.

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.