Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. cut its holdings in AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO) by 71.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 152 shares of the company’s stock after selling 377 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in AutoZone were worth $487,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in AutoZone by 354,692.5% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 993,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,293,100,000 after acquiring an additional 993,139 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of AutoZone by 186.8% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 92,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,544,000 after purchasing an additional 60,483 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 542.8% during the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 62,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $200,032,000 after purchasing an additional 52,753 shares in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoZone during the 3rd quarter worth about $85,127,000. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in AutoZone in the 3rd quarter valued at about $63,379,000. 92.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on AutoZone from $3,500.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on AutoZone from $3,350.00 to $3,750.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Roth Capital upgraded AutoZone to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,450.00 to $3,800.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of AutoZone from $3,024.00 to $3,585.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AutoZone presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,429.84.

AutoZone Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of AZO opened at $3,328.28 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $3,238.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $3,151.29. AutoZone, Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,672.31 and a 12-month high of $3,416.71. The firm has a market cap of $55.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.71.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $32.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $33.69 by ($1.17). AutoZone had a net margin of 14.18% and a negative return on equity of 53.89%. The company had revenue of $4.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $32.55 earnings per share. AutoZone’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that AutoZone, Inc. will post 152.94 earnings per share for the current year.

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.