Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. Trims Stock Position in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Key Points

• Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. reduced its position in AutoZone, Inc. by 46.6% during the 2nd quarter, now holding 11,326 shares worth approximately $42 million.
• Analysts have mixed views on AutoZone, with 23 buy ratings and a consensus price target of $4,538.21, despite recent price adjustments from firms like Citigroup and BMO Capital Markets.
• AutoZone's recent quarterly earnings report indicated a miss on estimates, with EPS of $48.71 and revenue slightly up 0.6% year-over-year, signaling potential challenges ahead.

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lessened its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 46.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,326 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,887 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. owned 0.07% of AutoZone worth $42,045,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 3.5% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 89 shares of the company's stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the period. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake 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 valued at $11,267,000 after buying an additional 271 shares during the period. Kirr Marbach & Co. LLC IN lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 0.9% during the first quarter. Kirr Marbach & Co. LLC IN now owns 7,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,591,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 98.3% during the first quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 829 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,161,000 after buying an additional 411 shares during the period. Finally, Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the first quarter valued at approximately $545,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,775.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,894.00 to $4,090.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and set a $4,850.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $4,750.00 price target (down previously from $4,800.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $4,538.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 2,860 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,175.70, for a total value of $11,942,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,194,570.80. This represents a 69.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the 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 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE:AZO opened at $4,219.73 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $70.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.40. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,980.10 and a fifty-two week high of $4,388.11. The firm's 50 day moving average is $4,126.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3,840.81.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $50.52 by ($1.81). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 60.49% and a net margin of 13.19%.The business had revenue of $6.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $51.58 EPS. AutoZone's revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.