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AutoZone (AZO) Laps the Stock Market: Here's Why

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AutoZone (AZO - Free Report) closed at $3,166.93 in the latest trading session, marking a +1.91% move from the prior day. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.39%. Elsewhere, the Dow saw a downswing of 0.13%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq appreciated by 0.6%.

Coming into today, shares of the auto parts retailer had lost 2.34% in the past month. In that same time, the Retail-Wholesale sector gained 1.99%, while the S&P 500 gained 1.06%.

The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of AutoZone in its upcoming release. In that report, analysts expect AutoZone to post earnings of $33.60 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 3.23%. Simultaneously, our latest consensus estimate expects the revenue to be $4.3 billion, showing a 2.61% escalation compared to the year-ago quarter.

For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $158.09 per share and a revenue of $18.8 billion, signifying shifts of +8.18% and +1.69%, respectively, from the last year.

Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for AutoZone. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As a result, upbeat changes in estimates indicate analysts' favorable outlook on the company's business health and profitability.

Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed an unchanged state. As of now, AutoZone holds a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

In terms of valuation, AutoZone is presently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 19.66. This represents a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 22.9.

Investors should also note that AZO has a PEG ratio of 1.57 right now. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. As of the close of trade yesterday, the Automotive - Retail and Wholesale - Parts industry held an average PEG ratio of 1.58.

The Automotive - Retail and Wholesale - Parts industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 188, putting it in the bottom 26% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.


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