Markets AZO Why AutoZone Stock Rallied Today September 22, 2026 — 10:00 pm EDT Written by Joe Tenebruso for The Motley Fool linkedin facebook x email reddit Key Points AutoZone opened 374 stores in fiscal 2026. Tariff refunds and buybacks boosted AutoZone's earnings per share. 10 stocks we like better than AutoZone › Shares of AutoZone (NYSE: AZO) rose on Tuesday after the automotive replacement parts and accessories distributor reported stronger-than-expected profits. Image source: Getty Images. Missed AI’s "Act 1"? Act 2 Could Be 15x Bigger. Most investors think they missed the AI boat because they didn't buy Nvidia in 2005. But according to our analysts, we’re only at the end of "Act 1"—the R&D phase. "Act 2" is the global rollout. Continue » AutoZone is expanding its store count at a solid clip AutoZone's net sales grew 5.6% year over year to $6.6 billion in its fiscal 2026 fourth quarter, which ended on Aug. 29. The auto-parts purveyor opened 175 stores during the quarter and a total of 374 over the trailing 12 months. AutoZone ended the period with 8,031 stores, including 6,863 stores in the U.S., 1,001 in Mexico, and 167 in Brazil. Additionally, same-store sales, which measure revenue from locations open for at least a year, increased by 2.7%, or 1.5% when excluding foreign currency fluctuations. "We grew our total store count, opening the most stores ever in a single year, improved on our assortment and in-stock positions, and continued to invest in systems to deliver even better customer service," CEO Phil Daniele said during a conference call with analysts. Better still, tariff refunds helped to drive AutoZone's operating profit up by 10% to $1.3 billion. Its net income, in turn, increased 11% to $931.6 million. And its earnings per share, boosted by stock buybacks, jumped 15% to $56.05. That topped Wall Street's estimates, which had called for per-share profits of $53.89, according to Yahoo! Finance. Management sees further growth in the U.S. and internationally Despite higher gas prices and a challenging overall economic environment, AutoZone expects more gains in the year ahead. "Over the last eight weeks of the quarter, our sales results strengthened, and we feel we are well-positioned for sales growth in fiscal 2027," Daniele said. Should you buy stock in AutoZone right now? Before you buy stock in AutoZone, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and AutoZone wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $395,625 !* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,397,147 !* Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 951 % — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 214% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor , and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of September 22, 2026. Joe Tenebruso has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy . The Motley Fool Founded in 1993 in Alexandria, VA., by brothers David and Tom Gardner, The Motley Fool is a multimedia financial-services company dedicated to building the world's greatest investment community. Reaching millions of people each month through its website, books, newspaper column, radio show, television appearances, and subscription newsletter services, The Motley Fool champions shareholder values and advocates tirelessly for the individual investor. The company's name was taken from Shakespeare, whose wise fools both instructed and amused, and could speak the truth to the king -- without getting their heads lopped off. Visit Fool.com for more market news More articles by this source Tags Markets Stocks Mentioned AZO Latest Articles Data is currently not available