China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Sells 30 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. trimmed its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 150 shares of the company’s stock after selling 30 shares during the quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $473,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AZO. Quent Capital LLC raised its position in AutoZone by 4.8% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 88 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $706,000 after buying an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Conning Inc. lifted its position in AutoZone by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 98 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 14.3% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 32 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,000 after buying an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in AutoZone by 4.1% during the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AutoZone Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,017.98 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $3,125.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $3,011.68. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,463.45 and a 12 month high of $3,256.37. The stock has a market cap of $51.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.70.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted 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). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.25 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $46.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 157.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AZO. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,341.00 to $3,501.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,202.71.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total value of $40,392,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,055,777.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the 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 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 14,880 shares of company stock valued at $46,225,660. Company insiders own 2.50% 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.