Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Purchases 9,633 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 16.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 69,181 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,633 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $256,816,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AZO. AlphaCore Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoZone in the first quarter worth $27,000. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in AutoZone during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Aspect Partners LLC increased its stake in AutoZone by 700.0% in the 2nd quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 8 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 7 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in AutoZone in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 9 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,100.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $4,700.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of AutoZone from $4,900.00 to $4,775.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,547.56.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,533 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,020.88, for a total value of $10,184,889.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 55 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,148.40. The trade was a 97.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP K. Michelle Borninkhof sold 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,775.00, for a total value of $1,132,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,570,400. The trade was a 41.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,693 shares of company stock worth $23,259,891. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,945.62 on Tuesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $3,162.00 and a 52-week high of $4,388.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a fifty day moving average of $3,938.43 and a 200-day moving average of $3,906.00.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $50.52 by ($1.81). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 60.49% and a net margin of 13.19%.The business had revenue of $6.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $51.58 EPS. AutoZone’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoZone announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, October 8th that permits the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

AutoZone 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.