AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Purchased by Federated Hermes Inc.

Key Points

• Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in AutoZone by 12.4% in Q1, holding a total value of $29.61 million in 7,767 shares after acquiring 857 additional shares.
• AutoZone's recent earnings report revealed an EPS of $35.36, which missed expectations by $1.71, despite a year-over-year revenue increase of 5.4% to $4.46 billion.
• Institutional investors own approximately 92.74% of AutoZone's stock, indicating strong interest and confidence from large financial entities.

Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 12.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,767 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 857 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.'s holdings in AutoZone were worth $29,614,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 435,031.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 770,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,936,535,000 after acquiring an additional 770,005 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in AutoZone by 82.6% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,033,000 after buying an additional 77,015 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 22.0% during 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 during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth about $95,480,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 204,822 shares of the company's stock worth $655,840,000 after purchasing an additional 26,036 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Stock Performance

AZO traded up $89.99 during trading on Friday, reaching $3,858.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 104,922 shares, compared to its average volume of 111,330. The company's fifty day moving average price is $3,707.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,615.00. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,898.57 and a 52-week high of $3,919.50. The company has a market capitalization of $64.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.38.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $36.69 earnings per share. The company'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 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,597.13, for a total transaction of $2,697,847.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 406 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,460,434.78. The trade was a 64.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Jamere Jackson sold 2,612 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,728.05, for a total transaction of $9,737,666.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 427 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,591,877.35. This trade represents a 85.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,862 shares of company stock valued at $126,058,789 over the last quarter. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the topic of several research reports. Guggenheim raised their price objective on AutoZone from $3,850.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on AutoZone from $4,192.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Evercore ISI set a $3,950.00 price objective on AutoZone in a report on Monday, May 19th. UBS Group raised their price objective on AutoZone from $4,025.00 to $4,260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Roth Capital set a $4,135.00 price objective on AutoZone and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average 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.