Janus Henderson Group PLC Reduces Stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Janus Henderson Group PLC decreased its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 12.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,631 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,626 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned approximately 0.07% of AutoZone worth $37,249,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its stake in AutoZone by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 61 shares of the company's stock worth $195,000 after buying an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC raised its stake in AutoZone by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 152 shares of the company's stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 132 shares of the company's stock valued at $423,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 371 shares of the company's stock worth $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

AutoZone Stock Up 0.6%

NYSE:AZO traded up $21.61 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $3,779.98. 161,315 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 130,310. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,728.97 and a twelve month high of $3,916.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $3,658.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3,417.80. The company has a market capitalization of $63.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.25, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.44.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. On average, research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total transaction of $568,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $177,500. The trade was a 76.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total transaction of $5,670,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,501,200. This trade represents a 79.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 11,521 shares of company stock valued at $42,177,331. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AZO. Roth Capital set a $3,763.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com raised shares of AutoZone from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Oppenheimer upgraded AutoZone from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $4,600.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. DA Davidson upgraded AutoZone from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $3,500.00 to $4,192.00 in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $3,821.91.

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.