Janus Henderson Group PLC Purchases 650 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,257 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 650 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $41,767,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 354,692.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 993,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,293,100,000 after purchasing an additional 993,139 shares during the period. PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in AutoZone by 137.6% during the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 310,043 shares of the company’s stock worth $918,998,000 after purchasing an additional 179,543 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in AutoZone by 2.3% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 150,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $446,684,000 after buying an additional 3,382 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in AutoZone in the second quarter valued at approximately $424,000. Finally, Baillie Gifford & Co. lifted its stake in AutoZone by 2,714.8% in the second quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 120,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $356,267,000 after buying an additional 115,924 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total transaction of $40,392,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the firm’s 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 owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. The trade was a 56.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660 over the last three months. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AZO shares. BNP Paribas raised shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on AutoZone from $3,038.00 to $3,125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,787.00 to $3,500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $3,200.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,341.00 to $3,501.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,232.88.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AZO opened at $3,308.39 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,510.00 and a 52 week high of $3,313.00. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $3,128.29 and its 200 day moving average is $3,043.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.10, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $53.31 by ($5.20). The firm had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.25 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.40% and a negative return on equity of 52.99%. AutoZone’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $46.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 earnings per share for the current year.

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.