AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Reaches New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $3,445.05 and last traded at $3,424.84, with a volume of 104889 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $3,350.21.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AZO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group cut AutoZone from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $3,205.00 to $2,917.00 in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,450.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. TD Cowen upped their price objective 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. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, 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 on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $3,429.84.

AutoZone Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $57.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.70. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $3,287.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3,178.73.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 53.89% and a net margin of 14.18%. The firm had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $32.55 EPS. AutoZone's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoZone

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AZO. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 354,692.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 993,419 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,293,100,000 after buying an additional 993,139 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 421,716 shares of the company's stock worth $1,326,545,000 after purchasing an additional 7,365 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 482,040.2% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 419,462 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,343,117,000 after purchasing an additional 419,375 shares in the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of AutoZone by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 213,575 shares of the company's stock valued at $683,867,000 after buying an additional 13,771 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshfield Associates increased its holdings in AutoZone by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Marshfield Associates now owns 169,586 shares of the company's stock worth $534,204,000 after buying an additional 796 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

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.