The auto parts retailer earned $38.07 per diluted share in its fiscal third quarter, topping analyst estimates of $36.18
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Diluted earnings per share of $38.07 cleared Wall Street's bar when AutoZone $AZO disclosed fiscal third-quarter net income of $641.5 million on Tuesday. Zacks Investment Research's survey of 11 analysts had pegged the consensus at $36.18 per share, the Associated Press reported.
Net sales for the 12-week quarter ended May 9, 2026, rose 8.4% year over year to $4.84 billion, the company said. On the top line, the $4.86 billion consensus among eight Zacks-surveyed analysts went unmet, the Associated Press noted.
Domestic same-store sales grew 4.1% in the quarter, while total company same-store sales rose 3.9% on a constant-currency basis. Both do-it-yourself and commercial sales grew domestically, President and CEO Phil Daniele said in a statement. Operating profit climbed 6.6% to $923.8 million, pushing the company's operating margin above 19% for the quarter.
Gross profit as a percentage of sales came in at 52.2%, a decrease of 57 basis points versus the prior year. The company said the decline was driven by a 77 basis point non-cash LIFO impact, partially offset by other gross margin improvements. Operating expenses as a percentage of sales fell to 33.1% from 33.3% a year earlier, helped by sales growth and expense management.
International same-store sales rose 16.6% on a reported basis but only 1.6% in constant currency, as operations in Mexico and Brazil underperformed internal targets. "While international performance has been below our plan, we believe our market share continues to grow as we outpace our competition in both international marketplaces," Daniele said in a statement.
Globally, 82 net new locations came online in the period, with the U.S. accounting for 57 of them, Mexico 20, and Brazil five, lifting the worldwide footprint to 7,856 stores. The company said it expects to open approximately 355 to 365 stores for the full fiscal year.
Buyback activity during the quarter totaled $586.3 million, covering 164,000 shares acquired at an average cost of $3,582 apiece. The company had $804.2 million remaining under its current repurchase authorization at the end of the quarter.
AutoZone's inventory rose 10.8% year over year to $7.56 billion, driven by growth initiatives and inflation, the company said.
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