MetLife Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

MetLife Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 3.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,153 shares of the company’s stock after selling 196 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $16,232,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in AutoZone by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 224 shares of the company’s stock worth $706,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Conning Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 98 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,000 after buying an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 14.3% during the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 32 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 4.1% in the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in AutoZone by 2.6% in the second quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock worth $490,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $3,200.00 target price on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,038.00 to $3,125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $3,280.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Guggenheim increased their target price on AutoZone from $3,225.00 to $3,350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $3,025.00 price target on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Monday, September 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,202.71.

AutoZone Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of AutoZone stock opened at $3,188.94 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.30, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.71. AutoZone, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,510.00 and a 52 week high of $3,256.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $3,115.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,032.95.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.25 billion. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 52.99% and a net margin of 14.40%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $46.46 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AutoZone, Inc. will post 158.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP John Scott Murphy sold 1,580 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,107.69, for a total transaction of $4,910,150.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,785,166.42. The trade was a 56.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,075.20, for a total transaction of $922,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 13,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,613,046.40. This trade represents a 2.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 14,880 shares of company stock worth $46,225,660 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.