Amalgamated Bank Cuts Stake in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Amalgamated Bank cut its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 8.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,562 shares of the company’s stock after selling 425 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $11,796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rock Creek Group LP bought a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in AutoZone in the third quarter worth about $43,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoZone during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, Buck Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new position in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at $64,000. 92.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on AZO shares. Mizuho started coverage on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $3,450.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on AutoZone from $3,000.00 to $3,200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Barclays upped their target price on AutoZone from $2,779.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on AutoZone from $3,400.00 to $3,346.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on AutoZone from $2,900.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,086.61.

AutoZone Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:AZO traded down $9.89 during trading on Friday, reaching $2,952.20. 102,073 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 135,291. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,277.88 and a fifty-two week high of $3,256.37. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,048.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $2,783.78. The firm has a market cap of $51.13 billion, a PE ratio of 20.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.72.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $26.08 by $2.81. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 56.06% and a net margin of 14.70%. The company had revenue of $3.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.32 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $24.64 earnings per share. AutoZone’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total transaction of $8,993,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,756,456.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,997.76, for a total value of $8,993,280.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,756,456.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Philip B. Daniele sold 4,190 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,161.68, for a total value of $13,247,439.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,845,512. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,990 shares of company stock valued at $50,335,193 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.50% 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.