AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by Argus

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) was downgraded by equities researchers at Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,450.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on AutoZone in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $3,700.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup boosted 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 note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,450.39.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,485.50 on Wednesday. AutoZone has a 12 month low of $2,728.97 and a 12 month high of $3,563.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.29, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.70. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $3,345.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,221.36.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its earnings results 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AutoZone will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoZone

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 482,040.2% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 419,462 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,343,117,000 after purchasing an additional 419,375 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth $834,556,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth about $471,629,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 6,083.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 90,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,281,000 after buying an additional 89,190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in AutoZone by 82.6% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,033,000 after buying an additional 77,015 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% 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.