What is William Blair's Forecast for AutoZone Q1 Earnings?

Key Points

• William Blair forecasts AutoZone's Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) to be $31.65, while the consensus estimate for the full year is $152.94 per share.
• AutoZone's recent quarterly earnings reported an EPS of $48.71, missing the analysts' forecast of $50.52 and generating $6.24 billion in revenue, slightly below expected figures.
• Investment firms have varying ratings and price targets for AutoZone, with Roth Capital setting a target price at $4,750.00, while Wells Fargo lowered their target to $4,700.00.

AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO - Free Report) - Investment analysts at William Blair issued their Q1 2026 EPS estimates for AutoZone in a research note issued on Tuesday, September 23rd. William Blair analyst P. Blee forecasts that the company will post earnings per share of $31.65 for the quarter. The consensus estimate for AutoZone's current full-year earnings is $152.94 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for AutoZone's Q2 2026 earnings at $28.34 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $33.90 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $52.75 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $146.62 EPS.

AZO has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating and issued a $4,750.00 target price (down previously from $4,800.00) on shares of AutoZone in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on AutoZone from $4,800.00 to $4,700.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays upped their price target on AutoZone from $3,916.00 to $4,610.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, September 11th. Wolfe Research began coverage on AutoZone in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $4,741.00 price target for the company. Finally, Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of AutoZone in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AutoZone currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $4,538.21.

AutoZone Price Performance

Shares of AZO stock opened at $4,131.49 on Friday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $4,069.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3,812.91. AutoZone has a 1 year low of $2,980.10 and a 1 year high of $4,388.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.52, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.41.

AutoZone (NYSE:AZO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 23rd. The company reported $48.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $50.52 by ($1.81). The company had revenue of $6.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.26 billion. AutoZone had a net margin of 13.19% and a negative return on equity of 60.49%. The company's quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $51.58 earnings per share.

Institutional Trading of AutoZone

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,771,004 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,574,374,000 after purchasing an additional 11,142 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of AutoZone by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 936,401 shares of the company's stock worth $3,570,296,000 after acquiring an additional 65,368 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in AutoZone by 371,123.0% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 935,482 shares of the company's stock worth $3,472,724,000 after purchasing an additional 935,230 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoZone by 435,031.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 770,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,936,535,000 after acquiring an additional 770,005 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of AutoZone by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 714,091 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,650,870,000 after purchasing an additional 11,088 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.74% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoZone

In related news, VP Richard Craig Smith sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,875.90, for a total value of $11,627,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 2,925 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,337,007.50. This trade represents a 50.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About AutoZone

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.

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