Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Raises Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 6,864 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 373 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.'s holdings in AutoZone were worth $26,171,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AZO. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 89 shares of the company's stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 24.5% during the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 61 shares of the company's stock valued at $197,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank increased its position in shares of AutoZone by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 4,262 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,647,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 82.6% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company's stock worth $545,033,000 after acquiring an additional 77,015 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in AutoZone by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 66,016 shares of the company's stock worth $211,383,000 after acquiring an additional 7,586 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 27,500 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,708.93, for a total transaction of $101,995,575.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 8,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,696,515.78. The trade was a 76.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,597.13, for a total transaction of $2,697,847.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 406 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,460,434.78. This trade represents a 64.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 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.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of AutoZone stock traded down $11.73 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $3,477.81. 18,631 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 128,841. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.36 billion, a PE ratio of 23.52, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a 50-day moving average of $3,696.27 and a 200 day moving average of $3,529.06. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,801.49 and a fifty-two week high of $3,916.81.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 27th. The company reported $35.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $36.69 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $4,100.00 target price (up previously from $3,850.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Guggenheim upped 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. Wedbush reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $3,700.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,830.00 to $4,350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer raised AutoZone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4,600.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $4,072.24.

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.