Nordea Investment Management AB Reduces Position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Nordea Investment Management AB decreased its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 13.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 158,469 shares of the company's stock after selling 23,815 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB owned about 0.94% of AutoZone worth $506,942,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AZO. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in AutoZone by 50.0% during the 2nd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 15 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the period. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in AutoZone during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 25.0% during the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 20 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AZO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of AutoZone in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $3,700.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,501.00 to $3,753.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,038.00 to $3,125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,450.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AutoZone presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $3,400.32.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the business'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 sale, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at $43,055,777.55. The trade was a 48.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AutoZone Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of AZO traded up $24.71 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $3,293.49. 181,210 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 133,203. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,510.00 and a 52-week high of $3,416.71. The company has a market cap of $55.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.71. The company's 50-day moving average price is $3,187.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,114.26.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $33.69 by ($1.17). The company had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $32.55 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 154.29 EPS for the current 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.