Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 122 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,807 shares of the company's stock after selling 122 shares during the period. AutoZone comprises about 2.8% of Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. owned 0.08% of AutoZone worth $48,830,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 435,031.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 770,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,936,535,000 after buying an additional 770,005 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in AutoZone by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 324,616 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,039,421,000 after acquiring an additional 17,518 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at about $834,556,000. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 204,822 shares of the company's stock valued at $655,840,000 after purchasing an additional 26,036 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 204,748 shares of the company's stock worth $655,603,000 after purchasing an additional 36,916 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

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

AutoZone Trading Down 0.5%

AZO opened at $3,667.00 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $3,700.47 and a 200-day moving average of $3,541.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.39. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,801.49 and a 1-year high of $3,916.81.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The company reported $35.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $37.07 by ($1.71). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.07% and a net margin of 13.56%. The company had revenue of $4.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $36.69 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,025.00 to $4,260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $4,100.00 price objective (up from $3,850.00) on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Mizuho boosted their target price on AutoZone from $3,740.00 to $4,050.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. 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 report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer upgraded 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 investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $4,087.00.

AutoZone Company Profile

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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