AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Sold by Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC

Key Points

• Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC reduced its AutoZone holdings by 4%, now owning 6,812 shares valued at approximately $25.29 million, making up 2.2% of its portfolio.
• AutoZone reported earnings of $48.71 per share for the last quarter, missing estimates and showing a small revenue increase of 0.6% year-over-year.
• The company's new stock buyback program signals confidence in its shares being undervalued, as insiders have also recently sold significant amounts of stock.

Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC trimmed its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 4.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,812 shares of the company's stock after selling 281 shares during the quarter. AutoZone makes up 2.2% of Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC's holdings in AutoZone were worth $25,286,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in AutoZone by 66.7% in the first quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the second quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the first quarter worth about $44,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AZO opened at $3,965.64 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $4,145.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,853.27. AutoZone, Inc. has a one year low of $2,980.10 and a one year high of $4,388.11. The firm has a market cap of $66.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 0.40.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $50.52 by ($1.81). The company had revenue of $6.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.26 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 13.19% and a negative return on equity of 60.49%. The business's revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $51.58 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, October 8th that allows the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total transaction of $11,942,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 1,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,194,570.80. This represents a 69.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,875.90, for a total value of $11,627,700.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 2,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,337,007.50. The trade was a 50.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on AZO. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on AutoZone from $4,504.00 to $4,499.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on AutoZone from $4,000.00 to $4,700.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $4,900.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $4,544.68.

AutoZone 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.