Stevens Capital Management LP Boosts Stock Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Stevens Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 106.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 455 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the quarter. Stevens Capital Management LP’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $1,457,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $61,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter worth approximately $67,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Mizuho lifted their target price on AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on AutoZone from $3,775.00 to $3,830.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,750.00 to $3,850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $3,763.00 price objective on AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AutoZone has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,683.36.

AutoZone Stock Performance

AZO opened at $3,605.88 on Friday. AutoZone, Inc. has a one year low of $2,728.97 and a one year high of $3,704.43. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $3,433.28 and its 200-day moving average is $3,258.73. The company has a market capitalization of $60.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.09, a P/E/G 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 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 firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 2,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,610.00, for a total transaction of $10,288,500.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,555,640. The trade was a 49.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 136 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 403 shares in the company, valued at $1,430,682.24. This trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,721 shares of company stock valued at $17,009,311. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

About AutoZone

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.