AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Sold by Nordea Investment Management AB

Nordea Investment Management AB trimmed its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 13.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 158,469 shares of the company’s stock after selling 23,815 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $506,942,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AZO. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 18.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,717,000 after buying an additional 6,898 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 186.8% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,544,000 after purchasing an additional 60,483 shares in the last quarter. Verde Capital Management purchased a new stake in AutoZone during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,137,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 592.0% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 9,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,012,000 after acquiring an additional 7,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 44.9% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC now owns 1,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,286,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their target price on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup boosted their price objective 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. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $3,025.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group boosted 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,400.32.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In related news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the business’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 sale, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at $43,055,777.55. The trade was a 48.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Stock Performance

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,268.78 on Monday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,510.00 and a 1 year high of $3,416.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $3,187.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3,114.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.84, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The company had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $32.55 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 154.29 EPS for the current year.

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.