Guggenheim Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Stock

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) had its price target lifted by equities research analysts at Guggenheim from $3,350.00 to $3,750.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Guggenheim’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 11.53% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on AutoZone from $3,038.00 to $3,125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $3,634.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group boosted their target price on AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $3,025.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Monday, September 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,289.25.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE AZO traded up $15.23 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $3,362.39. 28,746 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 139,288. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $3,137.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $3,057.08. AutoZone has a 12 month low of $2,510.00 and a 12 month high of $3,416.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The firm had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $32.55 earnings per share. AutoZone’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that AutoZone will post 155.79 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In related news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total value of $40,392,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at $43,055,777.55. The trade was a 48.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. This represents a 56.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone during the second quarter worth approximately $50,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 39.2% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,147,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 16,524 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,979,000 after purchasing an additional 869 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 2nd quarter valued at about $334,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in AutoZone by 39.3% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 49,818 shares of the company’s stock worth $147,666,000 after buying an additional 14,050 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.