Becker Capital Management Inc. Sells 163 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Becker Capital Management Inc. decreased its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,830 shares of the company's stock after selling 163 shares during the period. Becker Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in AutoZone were worth $25,072,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AZO. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in AutoZone by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 607 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,912,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in AutoZone by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,465,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in AutoZone during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $781,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 38.6% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 1,192 shares of the company's stock worth $3,755,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Price Performance

AZO traded up $23.17 during trading on Friday, hitting $3,756.09. The stock had a trading volume of 77,261 shares, compared to its average volume of 131,931. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $3,623.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $3,379.37. AutoZone, Inc. has a one year low of $2,728.97 and a one year high of $3,916.81. The firm has a market cap of $63.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $29.11 by ($0.82). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The business had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total transaction of $5,670,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 417 shares in the company, valued at $1,501,200. The trade was a 79.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total value of $568,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 50 shares of the company's stock, valued at $177,500. The trade was a 76.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,521 shares of company stock worth $42,177,331. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AZO. Oppenheimer raised shares of AutoZone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4,600.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday. DA Davidson raised shares of AutoZone from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $3,500.00 to $4,192.00 in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $3,700.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,490.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $3,814.91.

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.