Danske Bank A S Reduces Position in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Key Points

• Danske Bank A S reduced its stake in AutoZone by 32.6% in Q4, selling 3,636 shares and leaving 7,524 shares worth $25,518,000.
• Institutional ownership remains high at 92.74%, with mixed activity from other funds—e.g., the Treasurer of North Carolina increased its stake by 52.3% to 11,763 shares (worth $43,667,000).
• Sell‑side sentiment is broadly positive: the stock carries an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $4,312.13, and several firms (Oppenheimer, JPMorgan, Evercore) recently raised targets or reiterated outperform/overweight calls.

Danske Bank A S lessened its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 32.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,524 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,636 shares during the quarter. Danske Bank A S's holdings in AutoZone were worth $25,518,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AZO. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 111 shares of the company's stock worth $356,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter worth $356,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 248 shares of the company's stock worth $921,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 8.9% during the 2nd 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 last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 52.3% during the 2nd 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 last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $4,300.00 target price (up from $4,150.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Evercore lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,076.00 to $4,045.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. DA Davidson set a $4,300.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $4,312.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, Director Earl G. Graves, Jr. sold 50 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,478.72, for a total value of $173,936.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 4,837 shares in the company, valued at $16,826,568.64. The trade was a 1.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

AutoZone Stock Down 3.0%

AutoZone stock opened at $3,592.41 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $3,544.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,630.64. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $3,210.72 and a twelve month high of $4,388.11. The company has a market cap of $59.20 billion, a PE ratio of 25.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.43.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $27.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $27.59 by $0.04. AutoZone had a net margin of 12.47% and a negative return on equity of 72.31%. The firm had revenue of $4.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $28.29 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 148.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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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