Capstone Investment Advisors LLC Acquires 36 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Capstone Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 12.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 336 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $1,058,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 50.0% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 15 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the period. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter worth $47,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter worth $47,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 2nd quarter valued at $50,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AutoZone Trading Up 1.5 %

AZO stock opened at $3,190.10 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $53.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,510.00 and a 12 month high of $3,256.37. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $3,118.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,034.04.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $53.31 by ($5.20). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The business had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $46.46 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AZO. Evercore ISI increased their price target on AutoZone from $3,300.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut AutoZone from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,787.00 to $3,500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price 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 given a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,202.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total value of $40,392,950.00. Following 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,166.42. This represents a 56.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.