Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 112 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in AutoZone, Inc. by 12.4%, holding 789 shares valued at approximately $3.01 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Insider activity included Chairman William C. Rhodes III selling 27,500 shares for over $101.99 million, significantly reducing his position by 76.29%.
• AutoZone's stock has a market capitalization of $67.74 billion and recent earnings per share reported at $35.36, missing analysts' estimates of $37.07.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 12.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 789 shares of the company's stock after selling 112 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in AutoZone were worth $3,008,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 111,743 shares of the company's stock valued at $426,051,000 after purchasing an additional 4,025 shares during the period. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $5,560,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,759,862 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,709,967,000 after purchasing an additional 13,643 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 30.4% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 106,888 shares of the company's stock valued at $407,540,000 after purchasing an additional 24,933 shares during the period. Finally, Maxi Investments CY Ltd acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,010,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE AZO traded down $36.20 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $4,000.59. The company had a trading volume of 95,646 shares, compared to its average volume of 132,048. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.38. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,898.57 and a 1-year high of $4,094.69. The firm's 50 day moving average is $3,742.89 and its 200-day moving average is $3,651.77.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,597.13, for a total value of $2,697,847.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 406 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,460,434.78. This represents a 64.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,337,007.50. The trade was a 50.63% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 33,862 shares of company stock worth $126,058,789. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,740.00 to $4,050.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Evercore ISI set a $3,950.00 price objective on AutoZone in a research report on Monday, May 19th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $4,025.00 to $4,260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Roth Capital set a $4,135.00 price target on AutoZone and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $4,087.00.

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.