Simon Quick Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 330 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6 shares during the period. Simon Quick Advisors LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $1,057,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in AutoZone by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,717,000 after purchasing an additional 6,898 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in AutoZone by 186.8% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,544,000 after purchasing an additional 60,483 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 34,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,455,000 after acquiring an additional 7,922 shares during the period. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,460,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verde Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter worth about $1,137,000. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AZO. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Argus upped their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,560.00 to $3,678.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $3,025.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Monday, September 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,429.84.

AutoZone Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,299.95 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $55.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,672.31 and a fifty-two week high of $3,416.71. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $3,223.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3,139.31.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). The company had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $32.55 EPS. Research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 153.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.