Quantitative Investment Management LLC Purchases 144 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Key Points

• Quantitative Investment Management LLC has increased its stake in AutoZone by 31.7% during the first quarter, now holding 598 shares worth approximately $2.28 million.
• Several institutional investors have also increased their positions in AutoZone, with hedge funds owning 92.74% of the company's stock.
• AutoZone's latest quarterly earnings report revealed a miss on EPS estimates by $1.71, although the revenue of $4.46 billion exceeded expectations.

Quantitative Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 31.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 598 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. Quantitative Investment Management LLC's holdings in AutoZone were worth $2,280,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AZO. AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in AutoZone by 66.7% in the first quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the first quarter worth approximately $44,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the first quarter worth approximately $46,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on AZO. Roth Capital set a $4,135.00 price target on AutoZone and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Guggenheim upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,850.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $4,200.00 price target on AutoZone and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. DA Davidson upped their price target on AutoZone from $4,192.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on AutoZone from $4,025.00 to $4,260.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $4,101.29.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 27,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,708.93, for a total value of $101,995,575.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 8,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,696,515.78. This represents a 76.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president owned 2,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,337,007.50. This represents a 50.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 31,250 shares of company stock valued at $116,321,123. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AZO traded up $8.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $4,205.60. The company had a trading volume of 52,876 shares, compared to its average volume of 129,572. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,898.57 and a twelve month high of $4,229.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.58 billion, a PE ratio of 28.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.38. The stock's 50 day moving average is $3,855.93 and its 200-day moving average is $3,711.17.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.07% and a net margin of 13.56%.The company had revenue of $4.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.41 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $36.69 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

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.