AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Lifted to Strong-Buy at Redburn Atlantic

Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday, Zacks.com reports.

AZO has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wedbush reissued an outperform rating and issued a $3,200.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,900.00 to $3,350.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. DA Davidson reissued a neutral rating and issued a $3,025.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a report on Monday. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,394.00 to $3,341.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Buy and an average price target of $3,169.38.

AutoZone Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,066.92 on Tuesday. AutoZone has a 12 month low of $2,375.35 and a 12 month high of $3,256.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.21, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $3,134.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3,012.86.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $53.31 by ($5.20). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.60% and a negative return on equity of 54.58%. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $46.46 earnings per share. AutoZone’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that AutoZone will post 151.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other AutoZone news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoZone

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rafferty Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 1,718 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,442,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 132.6% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,911,000 after buying an additional 1,524 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 149.2% in the 4th quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 8,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,220,000 after buying an additional 4,914 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp increased its stake in AutoZone by 36.3% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 4,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,498,000 after buying an additional 1,184 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR increased its stake in AutoZone by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 3,397 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,783,000 after buying an additional 359 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.