PGGM Investments Has $11.16 Million Stock Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

PGGM Investments lowered its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 19.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,315 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,050 shares during the period. PGGM Investments’ holdings in AutoZone were worth $11,157,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 232,194.6% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 731,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,891,963,000 after purchasing an additional 731,413 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 441,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,121,572,000 after purchasing an additional 5,650 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 111.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 335,190 shares of the company’s stock worth $851,379,000 after purchasing an additional 176,623 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 259,964 shares of the company’s stock worth $660,309,000 after purchasing an additional 11,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 212,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $539,433,000 after purchasing an additional 1,516 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Performance

NYSE:AZO traded up $0.73 on Friday, hitting $2,945.98. The stock had a trading volume of 115,841 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,387. The stock has a market cap of $51.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.70. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,277.88 and a 1 year high of $3,256.37. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $3,029.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2,774.03.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $26.08 by $2.81. The firm had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.32 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.70% and a negative return on equity of 56.06%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $24.64 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total transaction of $21,374,474.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 15,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,992,208.54. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total transaction of $21,374,474.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 15,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,992,208.54. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,756,456.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,990 shares of company stock worth $50,335,193. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AZO. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,363.00 to $3,523.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $2,779.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,346.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,086.61.

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.