Northwest Bancshares Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Northwest Bancshares Inc. reduced its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 15.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,791 shares of the company's stock after selling 334 shares during the quarter. Northwest Bancshares Inc.'s holdings in AutoZone were worth $5,642,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AZO. West Family Investments Inc. grew its holdings in AutoZone by 5.0% during the third quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 232 shares of the company's stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone in the third quarter worth $29,141,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 4.4% in the third quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 566 shares of the company's stock worth $1,783,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. LGT Capital Partners LTD. raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 28.1% in the third quarter. LGT Capital Partners LTD. now owns 29,940 shares of the company's stock worth $94,312,000 after buying an additional 6,559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beddow Capital Management Inc. raised its position in AutoZone by 2.2% during the third quarter. Beddow Capital Management Inc. now owns 420 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,323,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AutoZone Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE AZO traded down $47.32 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $3,059.59. 40,298 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 138,221. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $3,113.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,027.64. AutoZone, Inc. has a one year low of $2,510.00 and a one year high of $3,256.37. The company has a market cap of $51.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 24th. The company reported $48.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $53.31 by ($5.20). The business had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.25 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.40% and a negative return on equity of 52.99%. AutoZone's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $46.46 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In related news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,785,166.42. This trade represents a 56.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 13,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.15, for a total transaction of $40,392,950.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 13,857 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $43,055,777.55. This trade represents a 48.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AZO shares. Redburn Atlantic upgraded AutoZone to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $3,200.00 price objective on shares of AutoZone in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Guggenheim raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com cut AutoZone from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on AutoZone from $3,300.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $3,202.71.

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.