AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Truist Financial Analyst Says

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) had its price target raised by Truist Financial from $3,501.00 to $3,753.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Truist Financial currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Roth Capital raised shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a research note on Monday, October 14th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $3,025.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,038.00 to $3,125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,360.47.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of AZO opened at $3,369.01 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,148.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,061.08. AutoZone has a 12-month low of $2,510.00 and a 12-month high of $3,416.71. The firm has a market cap of $56.95 billion, a PE ratio of 22.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). The company had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $32.55 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone will post 154.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AutoZone

In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total transaction of $40,392,950.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,055,777.55. This represents a 48.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total value of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. The trade was a 56.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock valued at $46,225,660. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoZone

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Conning Inc. lifted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 98 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 32 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock worth $490,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Petredis Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 710 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,237,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.