Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Buys 92 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp increased its stake in AutoZone by 0.4%, now holding 22,178 shares worth approximately $84.56 million.
• AutoZone's stock has seen analysts set new price targets, ranging from $3,811.00 to $4,600.00, with a consensus rating of "Buy."
• Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 27,500 shares of AutoZone stock, representing a significant decrease in his ownership by 76.29%.

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 0.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,178 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned 0.13% of AutoZone worth $84,560,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 30.0% in the 1st quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 13 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 14 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI set a $3,950.00 price target on AutoZone in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Oppenheimer upgraded AutoZone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4,600.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Roth Capital set a $4,135.00 price target on AutoZone and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on AutoZone from $4,192.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $4,087.00.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AZO traded up $89.99 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $3,858.37. 104,922 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 116,577. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.38. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,898.57 and a 52 week high of $3,919.50. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $3,707.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,620.79.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 27th. The company reported $35.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $37.07 by ($1.71). The firm had revenue of $4.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.41 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.07% and a net margin of 13.56%. AutoZone's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $36.69 EPS. Research analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In related news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 27,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,708.93, for a total value of $101,995,575.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 8,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,696,515.78. The trade was a 76.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $11,627,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 2,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,337,007.50. The trade was a 50.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 33,862 shares of company stock worth $126,058,789 in the last ninety days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.