Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Decreases Position in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Key Points

• Artisan Partners reduced its AutoZone stake by 13.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 7,128 shares and leaving it with 44,592 shares valued at about $151.2 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other institutions holding 92.74% of AutoZone’s stock; several firms, including Norges Bank and Morgan Stanley, increased their positions.
• AutoZone continues to get favorable analyst and corporate support, with a Moderate Buy consensus rating, a new $1.5 billion share buyback authorization, and strong recent quarterly earnings that topped EPS expectations.

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership trimmed its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 13.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 44,592 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,128 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned approximately 0.27% of AutoZone worth $151,233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the fourth quarter worth $939,205,000. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 492,794 shares of the company's stock worth $1,671,323,000 after acquiring an additional 74,555 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 387.1% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 77,792 shares of the company's stock worth $263,832,000 after acquiring an additional 61,821 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 39.5% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 176,986 shares of the company's stock worth $584,730,000 after acquiring an additional 50,071 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 80.8% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 101,185 shares of the company's stock worth $432,059,000 after acquiring an additional 45,212 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised AutoZone from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Argus raised AutoZone from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $4,325.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, March 9th. Guggenheim cut their price target on AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,000.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,000.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $4,000.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $4,040.87.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.7%

AutoZone stock opened at $3,128.25 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.51, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $3,355.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,500.15. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,928.11 and a 52 week high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 26th. The company reported $38.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $36.22 by $1.85. The firm had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.86 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 80.35% and a net margin of 12.40%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $35.36 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 150.45 EPS for the current year.

AutoZone announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, June 16th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Brian Hannasch purchased 165 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $2,987.00 per share, for a total transaction of $492,855.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 1,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,641,153. The trade was a 15.65% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Earl G. Graves, Jr. sold 50 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,478.72, for a total value of $173,936.00. Following the sale, the director owned 4,837 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,826,568.64. This represents a 1.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

About AutoZone

AutoZone, Inc NYSE: AZO is a retailer and distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the company supplies a wide range of aftermarket components, maintenance items and accessories for passenger cars, light trucks and commercial vehicles. Its product assortment includes engine parts, electrical components, batteries, brakes, filters, fluids and interior and exterior accessories, supported by inventory management and logistics systems to serve retail customers and professional service providers.

AutoZone serves both do‑it‑yourself (DIY) consumers and commercial customers such as independent repair shops and service centers.

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