Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Key Points

• Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. reduced its stake in AutoZone, Inc. by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter, now holding 1,051 shares valued at approximately $3.9 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Narus Financial Partners LLC and Toth Financial Advisory Corp, increased their stakes in AutoZone, reflecting overall strong institutional interest with 92.74% of shares held by such investors.
• Analysts have raised their target prices for AutoZone, with Truist Financial setting a new target of $4,504.00, contributing to a consensus “Buy” rating for the stock.

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. decreased its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,051 shares of the company's stock after selling 75 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.'s holdings in AutoZone were worth $3,902,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Narus Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 11.5% in the second quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 68 shares of the company's stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 1.6% in the second quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 2,549 shares of the company's stock worth $9,462,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone in the second quarter worth about $798,000. Avanza Fonder AB increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 10.1% in the second quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 1,563 shares of the company's stock worth $5,802,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Petredis Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 3.4% in the second quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 752 shares of the company's stock worth $2,792,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,038.00 to $4,504.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $4,000.00 price objective (up from $3,750.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,200.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,740.00 to $4,050.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $4,449.18.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AZO opened at $4,115.07 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $69.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.85, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.41. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,898.57 and a fifty-two week high of $4,388.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $4,041.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $3,805.01.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,875.90, for a total value of $11,627,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,925 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,337,007.50. The trade was a 50.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

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.

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