Cambria Investment Management L.P. Sells 515 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Key Points

• Cambria Investment Management cut its AutoZone stake by 64.8% in Q3, selling 515 shares and leaving 280 shares valued at $1,201,000 at quarter-end.
• AutoZone's quarter showed a slight EPS beat ($27.63 vs. $27.59) but a revenue miss (~$4.27B vs. $4.31B) and margin pressure from higher costs, even as the company targets 350–360 new stores in 2026.
• Insiders were net sellers overall (347 shares bought worth $1.18M vs. 9,447 shares sold worth $34.18M), though Director Brian Hannasch purchased 147 shares; institutional ownership remains high at 92.74%.

Cambria Investment Management L.P. lowered its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 64.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 280 shares of the company's stock after selling 515 shares during the quarter. Cambria Investment Management L.P.'s holdings in AutoZone were worth $1,201,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AZO. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in AutoZone by 3.6% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 52,668 shares of the company's stock worth $225,952,000 after buying an additional 1,821 shares in the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 319 shares of the company's stock worth $1,369,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 401.2% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,803 shares of the company's stock worth $222,247,000 after acquiring an additional 41,467 shares in the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 742 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,183,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 14.9% during the third quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 423 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,784,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

More AutoZone News

Here are the key news stories impacting AutoZone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AutoZone reiterated an aggressive growth plan, targeting 350–360 new stores in 2026, signaling continued capital deployment to expand retail footprint and commercial sales channels. AutoZone targets 350–360 new stores for 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Q2 EPS slightly beat expectations ($27.63 vs. $27.59 consensus), showing underlying cash generation and supporting many analysts’ buy/overweight stances. AutoZone Q2 Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Several major brokers raised price targets (Goldman Sachs, Citi, Morgan Stanley, Barclays), keeping a generally constructive analyst tone that supports upside expectations. Analyst price target moves
• Neutral Sentiment: Top-line was mixed — net sales rose ~8% YoY but missed Street revenue estimates (~$4.27B vs. $4.31B expected), creating ambiguity about near-term demand trends. Sales below analyst estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Company discussed LIFO accounting impacts and accelerated SG&A investment in the quarter — these choices support growth but complicate near-term margin comparability. LIFO and SG&A note
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure was a clear negative theme — higher production costs and inflationary headwinds compressed gross margins and contributed to a stock sell-off immediately after results. Margins fall after inflationary headwinds
• Negative Sentiment: Winter storms and weaker domestic same-store sales (despite positive comps) were called out as near-term demand headwinds that contributed to the revenue miss. Winter storms hurt sales
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts trimmed targets (DA Davidson, Truist, BMO lowered theirs) or cautioned on margins, reflecting divergent views on how quickly profit metrics will recover. Analyst target cuts

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In other news, Director Brian Hannasch purchased 147 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $3,393.09 per share, for a total transaction of $498,784.23. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 962 shares in the company, valued at $3,264,152.58. This trade represents a 18.04% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 97 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,341.99, for a total value of $324,173.03. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,564 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,910,852.36. The trade was a 2.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 347 shares of company stock worth $1,179,256 and sold 9,447 shares worth $34,179,923. Insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on AutoZone from $4,700.00 to $4,500.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. UBS Group set a $4,800.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Tuesday. Mizuho reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $3,550.00 price objective (down from $3,850.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Raymond James Financial cut their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,800.00 to $4,600.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,300.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $4,300.70.

AutoZone Stock Up 2.1%

AZO opened at $3,711.77 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.00, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $3,612.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $3,824.75. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $3,210.72 and a twelve month high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its 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. The business had revenue of $4.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.31 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 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $28.29 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

About AutoZone

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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