AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Purchased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 21,907 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $69,008,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AZO. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its position in AutoZone by 9.0% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $876,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in AutoZone during the first quarter worth about $274,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 60.7% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 22,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,326,000 after buying an additional 8,427 shares during the period. Fiduciary Family Office LLC boosted its stake in AutoZone by 51.6% during the first quarter. Fiduciary Family Office LLC now owns 144 shares of the company’s stock worth $454,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC purchased a new position in AutoZone during the first quarter worth about $347,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $43,055,777.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total transaction of $40,392,950.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,055,777.55. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock valued at $46,225,660. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:AZO opened at $3,110.12 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $3,112.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $3,017.76. The stock has a market cap of $52.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,510.00 and a fifty-two week high of $3,256.37.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $53.31 by ($5.20). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $46.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on AZO. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,038.00 to $3,125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $3,200.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,280.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,341.00 to $3,501.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AutoZone has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,202.71.

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.