Legal & General Group Plc Sells 2,677 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc reduced its AutoZone stake by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 2,677 shares and leaving it with 109,371 shares valued at about $370.9 million.
• AutoZone’s latest earnings beat expectations, with EPS of $38.07 and revenue up 8.4% year over year to $4.84 billion, though revenue still slightly missed analyst forecasts.
• The stock fell 9% and traded near $3,100, even as analysts remained generally positive with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and average target price of about $4,290.91.

Legal & General Group Plc lowered its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 109,371 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,677 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.66% of AutoZone worth $370,932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Glenview Trust Co increased its stake in AutoZone by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Glenview Trust Co now owns 344 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,167,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Swedbank AB increased its stake in AutoZone by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 33,479 shares of the company's stock valued at $113,544,000 after acquiring an additional 2,152 shares during the period. Shelter Rock Management LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at about $253,000. Buckhead Capital Management LLC increased its stake in AutoZone by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Buckhead Capital Management LLC now owns 1,282 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,348,000 after acquiring an additional 5 shares during the period. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in AutoZone by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 211 shares of the company's stock valued at $716,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Earl G. Graves, Jr. sold 50 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director directly owned 4,837 shares in the company, valued at $16,826,568.64. This represents a 1.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group set a $4,800.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,800.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,550.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Roth Mkm decreased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,650.00 to $4,526.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $4,290.91.

AutoZone Trading Down 9.0%

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,100.16 on Wednesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $3,001.00 and a 1 year high of $4,388.11. The firm's 50 day moving average is $3,448.20 and its 200-day moving average is $3,579.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.72, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.43.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 26th. The company reported $38.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $36.22 by $1.85. AutoZone had a net margin of 12.47% and a negative return on equity of 72.31%. The company had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.86 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $35.36 earnings per share. AutoZone's quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 149.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key AutoZone News

Here are the key news stories impacting AutoZone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AutoZone reported adjusted EPS of $38.07, topping analyst estimates, and total revenue rose 8.4% year over year to about $4.84 billion, showing the core business remains healthy. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Domestic momentum was a bright spot, with same-store sales up 4.1% and commercial/DIY demand still resilient, supporting confidence that repair demand is holding up despite a mixed consumer backdrop. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: On the earnings call, management sounded cautious, saying growth is being offset by accounting-related and margin headwinds, which may limit how much investors reward the beat. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue came in slightly below Wall Street expectations, and several reports say the selloff was driven by that miss rather than the EPS beat. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Investors also reacted to gross-margin compression, a non-cash LIFO accounting hit, and weaker international performance, which pressured sentiment despite strong sales growth. Article Title

AutoZone Company Profile

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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