North Growth Management Ltd. Makes New $3.66 Million Investment in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

North Growth Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,660,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AZO. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in AutoZone by 435,031.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 770,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,936,535,000 after buying an additional 770,005 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 482,040.2% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 419,462 shares of the company's stock worth $1,343,117,000 after acquiring an additional 419,375 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $834,556,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 6,083.9% in the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 90,656 shares of the company's stock valued at $290,281,000 after acquiring an additional 89,190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 82.6% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,033,000 after acquiring an additional 77,015 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of AZO traded up $40.49 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $3,644.12. The stock had a trading volume of 206,069 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,329. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,698.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3,523.91. The firm has a market cap of $61.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.40. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,801.49 and a fifty-two week high of $3,916.81.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on AZO. Truist Financial set a $3,995.00 target price on AutoZone in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $4,192.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen raised AutoZone from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Argus lowered AutoZone from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,025.00 to $4,260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $4,072.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total transaction of $7,600,020.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $619,401.63. The trade was a 92.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Domingo Hurtado sold 4,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,660.00, for a total value of $17,568,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 159 shares in the company, valued at $581,940. The trade was a 96.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 36,912 shares of company stock valued at $136,901,262 in the last three months. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.