AutoZone (AZO) closed the most recent trading day at $3,006.57, moving -4.32% from the previous trading session. The stock's change was less than the S&P 500's daily gain of 1.66%. Elsewhere, the Dow saw an upswing of 1.19%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq appreciated by 2.78%.
Heading into today, shares of the auto parts retailer had lost 2.36% over the past month, lagging the Retail-Wholesale sector's gain of 0.61% and the S&P 500's loss of 1.49%.
The upcoming earnings release of AutoZone will be of great interest to investors. It is anticipated that the company will report an EPS of $55.08, marking a 13.08% rise compared to the same quarter of the previous year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $6.71 billion, reflecting a 7.52% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.
Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $150.39 per share and revenue of $20.48 billion, indicating changes of +3.81% and +8.13%, respectively, compared to the previous year.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for AutoZone should also be noted by investors. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the business and profitability.
Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
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. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.08% lower. Currently, AutoZone is carrying a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Looking at its valuation, AutoZone is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 20.89. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 20.38.
Also, we should mention that AZO has a PEG ratio of 1.6. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. Automotive - Retail and Wholesale - Parts stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 1.8 based on yesterday's closing prices.
The Automotive - Retail and Wholesale - Parts industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 46, putting it in the top 19% of all 250+ industries.
The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.
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AutoZone, Inc. (AZO): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).