Paralel Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Paralel Advisors LLC increased its position in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) by 9.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 797 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. Paralel Advisors LLC's holdings in AutoZone were worth $2,552,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in AutoZone by 7.6% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 3,399 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,707,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 1.1% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 629 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,981,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 2.7% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 6,589 shares of the company's stock worth $20,756,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position 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 buying an additional 7,365 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in AutoZone by 5.3% during the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 499 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,572,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company's stock.

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AutoZone Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AZO traded up $40.85 on Friday, reaching $3,656.09. The company had a trading volume of 144,421 shares, compared to its average volume of 133,377. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.36 billion, a PE ratio of 24.43, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.54. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,728.97 and a 52-week high of $3,916.81. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $3,556.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,325.86.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,800.01, for a total value of $7,600,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $619,401.63. This represents a 92.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Bailey L. Childress sold 160 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,550.00, for a total value of $568,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 50 shares in the company, valued at $177,500. This trade represents a 76.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,721 shares of company stock worth $24,609,331. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on AZO. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,753.00 to $3,841.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,740.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,600.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on AutoZone from $3,525.00 to $3,700.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $3,724.00.

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.