Cartenna Capital LP Acquires New Shares in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Cartenna Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 20,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $65,574,000. AutoZone accounts for approximately 3.2% of Cartenna Capital LP's portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Cartenna Capital LP owned 0.12% of AutoZone at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in AutoZone by 18.1% during 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 period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 29.5% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 34,808 shares of the company's stock valued at $111,455,000 after buying an additional 7,922 shares during the last quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,642 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,460,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 82.6% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,033,000 after buying an additional 77,015 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 13.0% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 66,016 shares of the company's stock valued at $211,383,000 after buying an additional 7,586 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoZone Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of AutoZone stock traded up $59.51 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $3,677.42. 27,683 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 131,500. The company has a market cap of $61.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,728.97 and a fifty-two week high of $3,916.81. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,595.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3,365.80.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $29.11 by ($0.82). The company had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. On average, research analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total transaction of $7,600,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares in the company, valued at $619,401.63. The trade was a 92.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Domingo Hurtado sold 4,800 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,660.00, for a total transaction of $17,568,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 159 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $581,940. This represents a 96.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,521 shares of company stock worth $42,177,331. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded AutoZone from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $3,044.00 to $3,811.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. UBS Group raised their price objective on AutoZone from $3,875.00 to $4,025.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on AutoZone from $3,525.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $3,763.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $3,724.00.

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.