7,040 AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Sold by PineStone Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• PineStone Asset Management reduced its AutoZone stake by 2.9%, selling 7,040 shares and retaining 237,220 shares worth approximately $671.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.74% of AutoZone.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $3,669.12, although several firms recently lowered their targets.
• AutoZone reported 5.6% year-over-year revenue growth to $6.59 billion in its latest quarter, while shares opened at $3,116.62 and remain below their 52-week high of $4,040.

PineStone Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 2.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 237,220 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,040 shares during the period. AutoZone makes up about 4.4% of PineStone Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. PineStone Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 1.45% of AutoZone worth $671,337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AZO. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 42,984.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 10,537,614 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,821,658,000 after purchasing an additional 10,513,156 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter worth $3,938,566,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 646,568.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 659,602 shares of the company's stock worth $1,866,687,000 after buying an additional 659,500 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 79,236.8% during the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management LLC now owns 385,577 shares of the company's stock worth $1,091,191,000 after buying an additional 385,091 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 247,417.8% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 249,993 shares of the company's stock worth $798,963,000 after buying an additional 249,892 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on AutoZone from $4,000.00 to $3,700.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Morgan Stanley downgraded AutoZone from an "overweight" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,150.00 to $3,500.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Piper Sandler set a $3,500.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a report on Monday, August 31st. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,700.00 to $3,450.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $3,669.12.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZO opened at $3,116.62 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $2,937.50 and a 200-day moving average of $3,131.66. The company has a market capitalization of $50.89 billion, a PE ratio of 20.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.40. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,730.65 and a 52-week high of $4,040.00.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 22nd. The company reported $56.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by $55.51. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 90.08% and a net margin of 12.65%. The company had revenue of $6.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $48.71 EPS. AutoZone's revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 171.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoZone news, VP Dennis LeRiche sold 1,455 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,100.00, for a total value of $4,510,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 441 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,367,100. This represents a 76.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Company Profile

AutoZone, Inc is a specialty retailer of automotive replacement parts, accessories and maintenance products. The company serves do-it-yourself customers as well as professional automotive repair shops, offering products such as batteries, brakes, filters, engine components, tools, fluids and other vehicle parts.

In addition to its retail stores, AutoZone provides commercial sales and delivery services for professional repair businesses. The company also operates ALLDATA, which offers automotive diagnostic, repair and shop-management software and information services to repair professionals.

Founded in 1979 and headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, AutoZone operates primarily in the United States, with additional stores and operations in Mexico and Brazil.

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