Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Increases Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,820 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $25,040,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in AutoZone by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 154 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 8 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $712,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 10.9% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 918 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,892,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 18.9% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,952,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the period. Finally, Freedom Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter valued at approximately $708,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,769.72 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $3,483.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $3,278.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.26 billion, a PE ratio of 25.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,728.97 and a 1-year high of $3,838.00.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on AutoZone from $3,700.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $3,700.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AutoZone presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,683.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In related news, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total value of $568,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 50 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $177,500. This trade represents a 76.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total value of $7,600,020.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $619,401.63. The trade was a 92.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 6,721 shares of company stock valued at $24,609,331. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Company 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.