AutoZone, Inc. $AZO Shares Bought by Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in AutoZone by 30.4%, owning 106,888 shares valued at approximately $407.5 million as of the latest reporting period.
• Several institutional investors, including AlphaCore Capital LLC and Saudi Central Bank, also acquired new positions in AutoZone during the first quarter.
• Analyst ratings for AutoZone are predominantly positive, with three analysts rating it as a Strong Buy and an average target price of $4,148.90.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 30.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,888 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 24,933 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 0.64% of AutoZone worth $407,540,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 435,031.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 770,182 shares of the company's stock worth $2,936,535,000 after acquiring an additional 770,005 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 1st quarter worth approximately $442,530,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 936,401 shares of the company's stock worth $3,570,296,000 after acquiring an additional 65,368 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $95,480,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 349,317 shares of the company's stock worth $1,331,870,000 after acquiring an additional 24,701 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,875.90, for a total transaction of $11,627,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 2,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,337,007.50. This represents a 50.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 750 shares of the 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 406 shares in the company, valued at $1,460,434.78. This trade represents a 64.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on AZO shares. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,192.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Bank of America upgraded shares of AutoZone from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $3,900.00 to $4,800.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,850.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $4,200.00 price target on shares of AutoZone and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating and set a $4,100.00 price target (up previously from $3,850.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $4,229.38.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZO traded down $27.17 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $4,327.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 100,875 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,482. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $3,976.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,767.21. The company has a market cap of $72.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.41. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,898.57 and a 12-month high of $4,388.11.

AutoZone 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.