Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. Sells 9 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. lowered its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 1.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 755 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $2,379,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Summit Trail Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 110 shares of the company’s stock worth $283,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Guardian Capital LP boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Guardian Capital LP now owns 301 shares of the company’s stock worth $778,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 88 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC now owns 133 shares of the company’s stock worth $344,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the period. Finally, Stiles Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 191 shares of the company’s stock worth $494,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, VP Jenna M. Bedsole bought 36 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $2,757.10 per share, for a total transaction of $99,255.60. Following the completion of the purchase, the vice president now directly owns 36 shares in the company, valued at $99,255.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AutoZone Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of AZO traded down $36.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $2,921.53. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 86,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 148,446. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,375.35 and a 52-week high of $3,256.37. The company’s 50-day moving average is $2,870.98 and its 200-day moving average is $2,898.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.46, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 21st. The company reported $36.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $35.67 by $1.02. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.29 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.60% and a negative return on equity of 54.58%. AutoZone’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $34.12 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 151.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on AZO. StockNews.com cut shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Wolfe Research dropped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,150.00 to $3,000.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,420.00 to $3,250.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,150.00 to $3,225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, AutoZone has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,112.71.

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.