DA Davidson Issues Positive Forecast for AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) Stock Price

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by DA Davidson from $3,350.00 to $3,500.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. DA Davidson's price target suggests a potential downside of 0.16% from the company's current price.

AZO has been the topic of a number of other research reports. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Mizuho boosted their price target on AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,740.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Argus downgraded AutoZone from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoZone presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $3,601.85.

AutoZone Stock Up 0.9 %

AZO traded up $32.01 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $3,505.67. 35,467 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 108,453. The company's fifty day moving average price is $3,345.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,221.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.70. AutoZone has a 52-week low of $2,728.97 and a 52-week high of $3,563.57.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The company reported $28.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $29.11 by ($0.82). The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AutoZone will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AZO. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 18.1% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,946 shares of the company's stock worth $141,717,000 after buying an additional 6,898 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 186.8% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company's stock worth $292,544,000 after acquiring an additional 60,483 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised 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 worth $111,455,000 after acquiring an additional 7,922 shares in the last quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC increased its position in AutoZone by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Silverleafe Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,642 shares of the company's stock worth $8,460,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 592.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 9,210 shares of the company's stock worth $29,012,000 after buying an additional 7,879 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

AutoZone Company 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.

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