AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Bought by HM Payson & Co.

HM Payson & Co. grew its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 23,129 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the period. AutoZone comprises about 1.5% of HM Payson & Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. HM Payson & Co. owned 0.14% of AutoZone worth $88,184,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. raised its stake in AutoZone by 19.3% during the 1st quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 1,607 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,127,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its stake in AutoZone by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 3,660 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,955,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in AutoZone by 16.2% during the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the company's stock valued at $492,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in AutoZone by 15.7% during the 1st quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 1,281 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,884,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the period. Finally, Smart Money Group LLC raised its stake in AutoZone by 17.4% during the 1st quarter. Smart Money Group LLC now owns 276 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,052,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on AZO shares. Oppenheimer raised shares of AutoZone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4,600.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,740.00 to $4,050.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,830.00 to $4,350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $4,200.00 price target on shares of AutoZone and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,850.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $4,087.00.

AutoZone Price Performance

AZO stock opened at $3,667.00 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,801.49 and a 52-week high of $3,916.81. The company has a 50-day moving average of $3,701.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3,544.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.39.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The company reported $35.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $36.69 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other news, VP Domingo Hurtado sold 4,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,660.00, for a total transaction of $17,568,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 159 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $581,940. This represents a 96.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jamere Jackson sold 2,612 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,728.05, for a total transaction of $9,737,666.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 427 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,591,877.35. This represents a 85.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,662 shares of company stock worth $131,999,089 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

About AutoZone

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.

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