Nuveen LLC Acquires Shares of 116,065 AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired a new position in AutoZone, Inc. by purchasing 116,065 shares valued at approximately $442.5 million, representing around 0.69% of the company.
• AutoZone's stock has recently opened at $4,036.97, with a market cap of $67.74 billion, and the company reported a 5.4% increase in revenue for the last quarter year-over-year.
• Analysts have varied price targets for AutoZone, with the average target set at $4,087.00; the stock is rated as a "Buy" by most analysts.

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 116,065 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $442,530,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.69% of AutoZone as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in AutoZone by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 89 shares of the company's stock worth $339,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 24.5% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 61 shares of the company's stock valued at $197,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Comerica Bank grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 4,262 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,647,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 82.6% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company's stock worth $545,033,000 after buying an additional 77,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of AutoZone by 10.1% during the first quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 2,954 shares of the company's stock worth $11,267,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of AutoZone from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $3,900.00 to $4,800.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Oppenheimer raised shares of AutoZone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4,600.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on AutoZone from $4,025.00 to $4,260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Truist Financial set a $3,995.00 price target on AutoZone in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $3,811.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a report on Friday, May 23rd. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $4,087.00.

AutoZone Trading Down 1.0%

AZO stock traded down $39.98 during trading on Thursday, reaching $3,996.45. The stock had a trading volume of 80,503 shares, compared to its average volume of 131,558. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $3,754.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,656.84. The company has a market capitalization of $67.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.05, a PEG ratio of 2.39 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.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last posted 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 business had revenue of $4.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $36.69 earnings per share. AutoZone's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In related news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 24th. The stock was 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 $11,337,007.50. The trade was a 50.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 27,500 shares of the firm'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. This trade represents a 76.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,862 shares of company stock valued at $126,058,789 in the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About AutoZone

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.