William Blair Issues Negative Estimate for AutoZone Earnings

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) – Equities researchers at William Blair dropped their Q2 2025 earnings estimates for shares of AutoZone in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, December 10th. William Blair analyst P. Blee now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $28.45 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $28.68. The consensus estimate for AutoZone’s current full-year earnings is $154.29 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for AutoZone’s Q3 2025 earnings at $38.88 EPS and Q4 2025 earnings at $53.13 EPS.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Truist Financial increased their price target on AutoZone from $3,501.00 to $3,753.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Roth Capital upgraded shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued 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 company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,360.47.

AutoZone Price Performance

NYSE:AZO opened at $3,369.01 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $56.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $3,148.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3,061.08. AutoZone has a 1 year low of $2,510.00 and a 1 year high of $3,416.71.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoZone

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AZO. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC boosted its stake in AutoZone by 108.6% in the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 21,201 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,784,000 after buying an additional 11,037 shares in the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter worth approximately $2,208,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,946 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,717,000 after acquiring an additional 6,898 shares during the last quarter. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 44.9% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC now owns 1,678 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,286,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 38.6% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 1,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,755,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly 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 position. The transaction 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 company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, 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 90 days, insiders sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.