AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Stock Rating Upgraded by DA Davidson

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at DA Davidson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $4,192.00 price objective on the stock, up from their previous price objective of $3,500.00. DA Davidson's price target indicates a potential upside of 14.89% from the stock's previous close.

Several other research analysts have also commented on AZO. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on AutoZone from $3,634.00 to $3,763.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Capital set a $3,763.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,875.00 to $4,025.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $3,683.36.

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AutoZone Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZO traded up $42.51 during trading on Friday, hitting $3,648.85. The company's stock had a trading volume of 40,435 shares, compared to its average volume of 126,050. The company has a market capitalization of $61.24 billion, a PE ratio of 24.38, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone has a fifty-two week low of $2,728.97 and a fifty-two week high of $3,708.69. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $3,433.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,259.40.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $29.11 by ($0.82). The business 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, equities analysts predict that AutoZone will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 2,850 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,610.00, for a total transaction of $10,288,500.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,924 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,555,640. The trade was a 49.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Dennis W. Leriche sold 1,575 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,600.00, for a total transaction of $5,670,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 417 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,501,200. This trade represents a 79.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,721 shares of company stock worth $17,009,311 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. 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 worth $1,343,117,000 after buying an additional 419,375 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $834,556,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in AutoZone during the fourth quarter worth $471,629,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of AutoZone by 6,083.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 90,656 shares of the company's stock worth $290,281,000 after purchasing an additional 89,190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of AutoZone by 82.6% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 170,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $545,033,000 after acquiring an additional 77,015 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.