Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Increases Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. $AZO

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 6.1% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,833 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $9,569,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of AutoZone by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 492,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,671,323,000 after buying an additional 74,555 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of AutoZone by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 387,042 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,312,654,000 after buying an additional 7,390 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of AutoZone during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $939,205,000. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AutoZone by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 269,173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $912,900,000 after buying an additional 3,868 shares during the period. Finally, First Manhattan CO. LLC. lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 261,314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $886,246,000 after acquiring an additional 6,765 shares during the last quarter. 92.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial set a $3,700.00 price objective on AutoZone in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on AutoZone from $4,300.00 to $3,850.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings raised AutoZone from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Guggenheim lowered their price target on AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,000.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on AutoZone from $4,400.00 to $4,000.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,040.87.

AutoZone Stock Performance

AutoZone stock opened at $3,074.96 on Tuesday. AutoZone, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,928.11 and a fifty-two week high of $4,388.11. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $3,183.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $3,428.29. The company has a market capitalization of $50.21 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.33.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 26th. The company reported $38.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $36.22 by $1.85. AutoZone had a negative return on equity of 80.35% and a net margin of 12.40%.The company had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.86 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $35.36 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 150.51 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoZone declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 16th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In other news, Director Brian Hannasch acquired 165 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $2,987.00 per share, for a total transaction of $492,855.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 1,219 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,641,153. This represents a 15.65% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Company Profile

AutoZone, Inc (NYSE: AZO) is a retailer and distributor of automotive replacement parts and accessories. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the company supplies a wide range of aftermarket components, maintenance items and accessories for passenger cars, light trucks and commercial vehicles. Its product assortment includes engine parts, electrical components, batteries, brakes, filters, fluids and interior and exterior accessories, supported by inventory management and logistics systems to serve retail customers and professional service providers.

AutoZone serves both do?it?yourself (DIY) consumers and commercial customers such as independent repair shops and service centers.