Quantbot Technologies LP Invests $5.31 Million in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,685 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,308,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AZO. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in AutoZone by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $706,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Conning Inc. raised its stake in AutoZone by 4.3% in the second quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 98 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in AutoZone by 14.3% in the second 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 lifted its position in AutoZone by 4.1% during the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 101 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in AutoZone by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AZO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,300.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $3,634.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Roth Capital upgraded AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com cut AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 21st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on AutoZone from $3,341.00 to $3,501.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. One equities research 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 MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,202.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoZone news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 300 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,075.20, for a total transaction of $922,560.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,613,046.40. The trade was a 2.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was 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 $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 quarter, insiders have sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Stock Performance

AutoZone stock opened at $3,147.95 on Wednesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,510.00 and a 52-week high of $3,256.37. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $3,112.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3,031.85. The firm has a market cap of $53.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $53.31 by ($5.20). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.40% and a negative return on equity of 52.99%. The firm had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.25 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $46.46 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.