AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $1.17 EPS

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17), RTT News reports. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%.

AutoZone Price Performance

AZO opened at $3,326.95 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $3,134.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3,053.20. The company has a market capitalization of $56.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone has a 1-year low of $2,510.00 and a 1-year high of $3,345.27.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. This represents a 56.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 48.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup lowered their price target on AutoZone from $3,787.00 to $3,500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. BNP Paribas raised shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,300.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of 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 research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,038.00 to $3,125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,232.88.

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.