Mizuho Issues Positive Forecast for AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Stock Price

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) had its price objective boosted by Mizuho from $3,550.00 to $3,600.00 in a report published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Evercore lifted their price target on AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research upgraded AutoZone from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on AutoZone from $4,700.00 to $4,500.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,500.00 to $4,100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,311.57.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,746.41 on Thursday. AutoZone has a 12-month low of $3,210.72 and a 12-month high of $4,388.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $3,617.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3,824.20.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $27.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $27.59 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 72.31% and a net margin of 12.47%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $28.29 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AutoZone will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoZone

In related news, Director George R. Mrkonic, Jr. sold 97 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,341.99, for a total value of $324,173.03. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,910,852.36. This represents a 2.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian Hannasch bought 147 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $3,393.09 per share, for a total transaction of $498,784.23. Following the purchase, the director owned 962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,264,152.58. This represents a 18.04% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 347 shares of company stock worth $1,179,256 and sold 9,447 shares worth $34,179,923. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,797,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,711,912,000 after buying an additional 26,544 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in AutoZone by 371,123.0% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 935,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,472,724,000 after purchasing an additional 935,230 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in AutoZone by 1.6% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 714,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,650,870,000 after purchasing an additional 11,088 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in AutoZone by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 492,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,671,323,000 after purchasing an additional 74,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 444,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,649,228,000 after buying an additional 8,187 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting AutoZone

Here are the key news stories impacting AutoZone this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple major brokers raised price targets or reaffirmed buy/overweight ratings (Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Barclays), which supports upside expectations and likely helped buying interest this morning. Read More. • Read More. • Read More. • Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Q2 EPS slightly beat consensus (reported EPS vs. estimate) and sales grew ~8% Y/Y; management highlighted commercial growth and store expansion as offsets to the topline shortfall. That beat helps justify current valuations despite headwinds. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Management reiterated an aggressive store growth plan (targeting 350–360 new stores for 2026), which supports long‑term revenue expansion and is a constructive growth catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views are mixed overall — some firms cut PTs modestly but kept buy ratings, while others raised targets; the net effect is a crowded but heterogeneous analyst stance that creates both upside and downside scenarios. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Topline missed a few estimates and management said an unusually strong winter season and softer Mexico sales weighed on Q2 revenues — a clear near-term headwind to growth. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure from higher production costs, LIFO inventory impacts and accelerated SG&A investments was highlighted by several reports and analysts; margin compression could limit near-term EPS upside even with revenue growth. Read More. • Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Some firms trimmed price targets or moved to neutral (e.g., Mizuho raised its PT but set a neutral rating at a level below the current price), introducing potential selling pressure for investors focused on near‑term downside risk. Read More.

AutoZone Company Profile

AutoZone, Inc (NYSE: AZO) is a retailer and distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the company supplies a wide range of aftermarket components, maintenance items and accessories for passenger cars, light trucks and commercial vehicles. Its product assortment includes engine parts, electrical components, batteries, brakes, filters, fluids and interior and exterior accessories, supported by inventory management and logistics systems to serve retail customers and professional service providers.

AutoZone serves both do‑it‑yourself (DIY) consumers and commercial customers such as independent repair shops and service centers.