AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) Shares Sold by Hancock Whitney Corp

Hancock Whitney Corp trimmed its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,756 shares of the company’s stock after selling 29 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $14,982,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.8% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $706,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. Conning Inc. lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 98 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 14.3% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 32 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 101 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings 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 in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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 transaction, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,055,777.55. This represents a 48.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 56.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $3,099.38 on Monday. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,510.00 and a fifty-two week high of $3,256.37. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $3,111.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3,029.75. The firm has a market cap of $52.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.70, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. UBS Group upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,340.00 to $3,500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Roth Capital raised AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,280.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus 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.