Private Management Group Inc. Sells 1,003 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Private Management Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 22.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,428 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,003 shares during the quarter. Private Management Group Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $10,976,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 354,692.5% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 993,419 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,293,100,000 after purchasing an additional 993,139 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of AutoZone by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 421,716 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,326,545,000 after buying an additional 7,365 shares during the period. Marshfield Associates lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 0.5% in the third quarter. Marshfield Associates now owns 169,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $534,204,000 after buying an additional 796 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 0.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 104,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $329,699,000 after buying an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 186.8% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,544,000 after acquiring an additional 60,483 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Up 0.6 %

AutoZone stock opened at $3,478.43 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $3,275.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3,174.59. AutoZone, Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,672.31 and a twelve month high of $3,481.36. The company has a market capitalization of $58.37 billion, a PE ratio of 23.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.70.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $33.69 by ($1.17). The company had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $32.55 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Argus increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,560.00 to $3,678.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Roth Capital raised AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on AutoZone in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $3,700.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,429.84.

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.