AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $3,788.10 and last traded at $3,776.69, with a volume of 41456 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $3,681.68.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AZO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,525.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $3,700.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,740.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,683.36.

AutoZone Stock Down 1.5 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $3,483.80 and a 200-day moving average of $3,278.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.19, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total value of $7,600,020.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares in the company, valued at $619,401.63. This trade represents a 92.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $568,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $177,500. This represents a 76.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 6,721 shares of company stock valued at $24,609,331. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AutoZone

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 42.9% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 750.0% in the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 17 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

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.