Natixis Advisors L.P. Decreases Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Natixis Advisors L.P. lowered its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 8.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,255 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,323 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. owned 0.09% of AutoZone worth $39,445,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Summit Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in AutoZone by 36.6% during the 4th quarter. Summit Asset Management LLC now owns 2,619 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,772,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 38.3% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,130,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone in the fourth quarter valued at about $282,000. Buckhead Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in AutoZone by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Buckhead Capital Management LLC now owns 1,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,271,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $248,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 4,190 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,161.68, for a total transaction of $13,247,439.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,845,512. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,990 shares of company stock valued at $50,335,193 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of AutoZone stock traded down $9.89 on Friday, reaching $2,952.20. 102,073 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 135,291. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,277.88 and a fifty-two week high of $3,256.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $3,048.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $2,783.78.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $26.08 by $2.81. The company had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.32 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.70% and a negative return on equity of 56.06%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $24.64 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on AZO shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,346.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Mizuho initiated coverage on AutoZone in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $3,450.00 target price for the company. Wedbush raised their price target on AutoZone from $2,950.00 to $3,400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their target price on AutoZone from $2,770.00 to $3,025.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,086.61.

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.