AutoZone has ‘solid’ Q3

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — AutoZone reported net sales of $2.2 billion for the 12-week third quarter period ended May 4, an increase of 4.5% from $2.1 billion for the same period last year. Domestic same-store sales decreased 0.1% for the quarter.

Net income for the quarter was $266 million, an increase of 6.8% from $249 for the same period last year. Meanwhile, gross profit was 51.8%, versus 51.6% for last year's quarter. The increase in gross margin was primarily driven by lower acquisition costs, partially offset by the inclusion of AutoAnything, an online retailer of specialized automotive products.

"Our organization executed our game plan and delivered another quarter of solid performance,” said Bill Rhodes, chairman, president and CEO. “While sales results for the quarter finished below our expectations, we were pleased to see noticeable improvements in our performance during the final four weeks of the quarter, specifically in our more recently challenged Northeastern and Midwestern markets."

Rhodes believes the company’s ongoing efforts to improve its inventory assortment and accelerate its deployment will have meaningful impacts on results for upcoming quarters.

During the quarter, AutoZone opened 33 new stores, relocated three stores and closed one store in the U.S. and opened seven new stores in Mexico. As of May 4, the company had 4,767 stores in 49 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico in the U.S., 341 stores in Mexico and one store in Brazil for a total store count of 5,109.