Boston Trust Walden Corp Decreases Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden Corp trimmed its AutoZone stake by 6.0% in Q4, selling 1,046 shares and now owns 16,280 shares (0.10% of the company) valued at about $55.21 million.
• AutoZone reported quarterly EPS of $27.63, narrowly beating estimates, while revenue of $4.27 billion slightly missed expectations but rose 8.2% year-over-year.
• Insiders have been selling (VP Richard Craig Smith sold 5,910 shares for roughly $21.9 million), institutional ownership is about 92.74%, and analysts hold a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with an average price target near $4,312.

Boston Trust Walden Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,280 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,046 shares during the quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned 0.10% of AutoZone worth $55,214,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AZO. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 111 shares of the company's stock worth $356,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoZone in the second quarter worth $356,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 3.8% in the second quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 248 shares of the company's stock worth $921,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 8.9% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,376 shares of the company's stock worth $5,110,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 52.3% in the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 11,763 shares of the company's stock worth $43,667,000 after acquiring an additional 4,039 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AutoZone Stock Performance

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,608.50 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.41. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $3,210.72 and a 52-week high of $4,388.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $3,571.32 and a 200 day moving average of $3,651.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $27.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $27.59 by $0.04. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 72.31% and a net margin of 12.47%.The firm had revenue of $4.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $28.29 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 149.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other AutoZone news, Director Earl G. Graves, Jr. sold 50 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,478.72, for a total transaction of $173,936.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 4,837 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,826,568.64. The trade was a 1.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 5,910 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,700.00, for a total value of $21,867,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,627 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,719,900. This trade represents a 69.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore raised their price target on AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,300.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Robert W. Baird lowered AutoZone from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $3,900.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, February 9th. Argus raised AutoZone from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $4,325.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,250.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AutoZone has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $4,312.13.

AutoZone Company 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.

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