AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Stake Boosted by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 13.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 593 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in AutoZone were worth $2,261,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Tradewinds Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 30.0% in the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 13 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AZO shares. Guggenheim lifted their target price 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 objective on AutoZone and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Oppenheimer raised AutoZone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4,600.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised AutoZone from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $3,950.00 price objective on AutoZone in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Two 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.com, AutoZone currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $4,087.00.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In related news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 27,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The shares were 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 directly owned 406 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,460,434.78. This represents a 64.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 35,662 shares of company stock valued at $131,999,089 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

AutoZone Trading Down 0.5%

AutoZone stock traded down $18.34 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $3,667.00. The stock had a trading volume of 84,768 shares, compared to its average volume of 130,386. The stock has a market cap of $61.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.39. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,802.79 and a 12 month high of $3,916.81. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $3,701.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,546.14.

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