AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC Makes New $701,000 Investment in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $701,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 42.9% during the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at $61,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its stake in AutoZone by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth about $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 2,850 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,610.00, for a total value of $10,288,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,555,640. This represents a 49.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 136 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.08, for a total value of $482,810.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,430,682.24. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 4,721 shares of company stock valued at $17,009,311. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Up 3.9 %

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,825.31 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3,472.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3,273.98. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,728.97 and a 12 month high of $3,860.85. The firm has a market cap of $64.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.98 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AZO. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,753.00 to $3,841.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Argus lowered shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,683.36.

AutoZone Profile

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.