Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Increases Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 253 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $810,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in AutoZone by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Petredis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,237,000 after buying an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 4.4% during the third quarter. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 95 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 5.0% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 84 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $841,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 99 shares of the company’s stock valued at $312,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of AZO opened at $3,428.09 on Tuesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,672.31 and a 1 year high of $3,484.42. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,292.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,185.47. The company has a market capitalization of $57.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.90, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.70.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The company had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $32.55 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Citigroup lifted their target price on AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Roth Capital upgraded shares of AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $3,700.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AutoZone currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,429.84.

About AutoZone

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.