AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Hits New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• AutoZone's stock reached a new 52-week high of $4,229.68 during trading, closing at $4,195.05 with a volume of 89,713 shares.
• Research firms have revised AutoZone's price targets upwards, with UBS increasing theirs to $4,260.00 and JPMorgan to $4,350.00, both maintaining "buy" and "overweight" ratings.
• Insider selling has been significant, with SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof and Chairman William C. Rhodes III reducing their holdings by 64.88% and 76.29% respectively in recent months.

Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $4,229.68 and last traded at $4,195.05, with a volume of 89713 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $4,197.09.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Truist Financial set a $3,995.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AutoZone from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,830.00 to $4,350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,025.00 to $4,260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $4,200.00 target price on AutoZone and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $4,148.90.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.4%

The firm has a market cap of $70.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3,929.54 and a 200 day moving average of $3,742.59.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 750 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,597.13, for a total value of $2,697,847.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 406 shares in the company, valued at $1,460,434.78. The trade was a 64.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, 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 value of $101,995,575.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 8,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,696,515.78. This represents a 76.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 31,250 shares of company stock valued at $116,321,123 over the last quarter. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Forum Financial Management LP lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 138 shares of the company's stock valued at $443,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its stake in AutoZone by 2.2% during the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 141 shares of the company's stock worth $538,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. lifted its stake in AutoZone by 2.9% during the first quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 105 shares of the company's stock worth $400,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 3.5% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 89 shares of the company's stock valued at $339,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 4.8% in the first quarter. Rappaport Reiches Capital Management LLC now owns 66 shares of the company's stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

AutoZone Company 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.