Sather Financial Group Inc Sells 24 Shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Sather Financial Group Inc lessened its position in shares of AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,554 shares of the company’s stock after selling 24 shares during the period. AutoZone makes up 1.6% of Sather Financial Group Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Sather Financial Group Inc’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $22,117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in AutoZone by 232,194.6% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 731,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,891,963,000 after purchasing an additional 731,413 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 107,977.3% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 699,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,724,500,000 after acquiring an additional 698,613 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in AutoZone by 368.0% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 411,450 shares of the company’s stock worth $841,242,000 after acquiring an additional 323,536 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in AutoZone in the fourth quarter worth $658,788,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in AutoZone by 111.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 335,190 shares of the company’s stock valued at $851,379,000 after purchasing an additional 176,623 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoZone Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE AZO traded down $32.47 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $3,043.62. The company had a trading volume of 225,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 157,230. AutoZone, Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,277.88 and a 1 year high of $3,256.37. The company has a market capitalization of $52.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.70. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $2,972.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $2,733.75.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $28.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $26.08 by $2.81. AutoZone had a net margin of 14.70% and a negative return on equity of 56.06%. The company had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.32 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $24.64 earnings per share. AutoZone’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 151.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AZO has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays raised their target price on AutoZone from $2,779.00 to $3,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com upgraded AutoZone from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,375.00 to $3,400.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of AutoZone from $2,770.00 to $3,025.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of AutoZone from $3,100.00 to $3,425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,089.61.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoZone news, VP Grant E. Mcgee sold 693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,654.14, for a total value of $1,839,319.02. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $666,189.14. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other AutoZone news, VP Grant E. Mcgee sold 693 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,654.14, for a total value of $1,839,319.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $666,189.14. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman William C. Rhodes III sold 6,700 shares of AutoZone stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,190.22, for a total transaction of $21,374,474.00. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 15,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,992,208.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 19,583 shares of company stock worth $60,056,012. 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.