AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Purchased by National Pension Service

Key Points

• National Pension Service increased its AutoZone stake by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 45,107 shares valued at about $153 million.
• AutoZone’s latest quarter showed 8.4% year-over-year revenue growth and an EPS beat, but revenue came in slightly below expectations, contributing to the stock’s decline.
• Despite lower price targets from some analysts, Wall Street remains broadly positive on the name, with a Moderate Buy consensus and a target price around $4,040.87.

National Pension Service increased its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 45,107 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 805 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned 0.27% of AutoZone worth $152,980,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in AutoZone by 1.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,797,548 shares of the company's stock worth $7,711,912,000 after purchasing an additional 26,544 shares during the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 269,173 shares of the company's stock worth $912,900,000 after acquiring an additional 3,868 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 189,789 shares of the company's stock worth $814,240,000 after acquiring an additional 2,333 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, Marshfield Associates raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 3.2% in the third quarter. Marshfield Associates now owns 172,332 shares of the company's stock worth $739,347,000 after acquiring an additional 5,293 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting AutoZone

Here are the key news stories impacting AutoZone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several brokerages, including Guggenheim and TD Cowen, reiterated bullish ratings on AutoZone, and other analysts still see meaningful upside despite the selloff.
• Positive Sentiment: AutoZone reported 8.4% year-over-year revenue growth and management said commercial momentum remains strong, with plans to open 355 to 365 new locations this fiscal year.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst updates lowered price targets, including moves from Jefferies and BNP Paribas Exane, but both firms kept positive ratings, signaling reduced optimism rather than a bearish call.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary suggests investors are weighing whether the post-earnings decline has created a buying opportunity or whether the stock could fall further from current levels.
• Negative Sentiment: AutoZone’s latest results fell short of revenue expectations, which triggered the stock’s decline as investors focused on the miss rather than the EPS beat. Article: Why AutoZone Stock Slumped This Week
• Negative Sentiment: Some reports say the stock is sliding because investors are concerned that late-quarter softness may point to slowing momentum, despite management’s explanation that weather impacted results.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

AutoZone Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:AZO opened at $2,936.42 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $48.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.43. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,931.65 and a 52 week high of $4,388.11. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $3,421.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3,565.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 26th. The company reported $38.07 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $36.22 by $1.85. The business had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.86 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 72.31% and a net margin of 12.47%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $35.36 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 150.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on AutoZone from $4,478.00 to $3,979.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. 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. Barclays boosted their price target on AutoZone from $3,800.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. DA Davidson cut their price target on AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $3,750.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $4,040.87.

AutoZone Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.