MEMPHIS, Tenn., March 03, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE: AZO) today reported net sales of $4.3 billion for its second quarter (12 weeks) ended February 14, 2026, an increase of 8.1% from the second quarter of fiscal 2025 (12 weeks). Same store sales, or sales for our domestic and international stores open at least one year, are as follows: Constant Currency Constant Currency 12 Wee...
MEMPHIS, Tenn., March 03, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE: AZO) today reported net sales of $4.3 billion for its second quarter (12 weeks) ended February 14, 2026, an increase of 8.1% from the second quarter of fiscal 2025 (12 weeks). Same store sales, or sales for our domestic and international stores open at least one year, are as follows: Constant Currency Constant Currency 12 Weeks 12 Weeks* 24 Weeks 24 Weeks* Domestic 3.4 % 3.4 % 4.2 % 4.2 % International 17.1 % 2.5 % 14.2 % 3.1 % Total Company 5.2 % 3.3 % 5.4 % 4.0 % * Excludes impacts from fluctuations of foreign exchange rates. For the quarter, gross profit, as a percentage of sales, was 52.5%, a decrease of 137 basis points versus the prior year. The decrease in gross margin was driven by a 138 basis point non-cash LIFO charge. Operating expenses, as a percentage of sales, were 36.1% versus last year at 36.0%. Deleverage was driven by investments to support our growth initiatives. Operating profit decreased 1.2% to $698.5 million. Net income for the quarter was $468.9 million compared to $487.9 million in the same period last year, while diluted earnings per share were $27.63 compared to last year at $28.29. Under its share repurchase program, AutoZone repurchased 85 thousand shares of its common stock at an average price per share of $3,666, for a total investment of $310.8 million. At the end of the second quarter, the Company had $1.4 billion remaining under its current share repurchase authorization. The Company’s inventory increased 13.1% over the same period last year, driven primarily by growth initiatives and inflation. Net inventory, defined as merchandise inventories less accounts payable, on a per store basis, was negative $105 thousand versus negative $161 thousand last year and negative $145 thousand last quarter. “I want to thank our AutoZoners across the company for delivering solid financial results this past quarter. We continue to be pleased with our strategies to grow sales....
'DEPART NOW': US Tells Citizens To Flee Middle East, But Most Airspace Closed As Iran's response to Israeli and US warfare causes havoc across the Middle East, the US government is urging its citizens to immediately evacuate if they're in any of 14 countries in the region -- something far easier said than done. "The [State Department] urges Americans to DEPART NOW...using available commercial tran...
'DEPART NOW': US Tells Citizens To Flee Middle East, But Most Airspace Closed As Iran's response to Israeli and US warfare causes havoc across the Middle East, the US government is urging its citizens to immediately evacuate if they're in any of 14 countries in the region -- something far easier said than done. "The [State Department] urges Americans to DEPART NOW...using available commercial transportation, due to serious safety risks," wrote Assistant Secretary of State Mora Namdar on X . Nearly the entire Middle East has been deemed too dangerous to stay in: Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, UAE and Yemen. Namdar encouraged those who are abroad and need assistance to call the State Department at +1-202-501-4444, and to enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program ( STEP ), which promises to deliver "the latest messages and updates from your nearest US Embassy or Consulate." A plume of smoke rises above a UAE airport after an Iranian strike on March 1 (from AP video) For Americans in the region, four words in the State Department warning are certain to cause resentment: "using available commercial transportation." Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Iraq, Iran, Syria and Israel have all closed their airspace, and other airline flights have been affected. That leaves some Americans feeling like they're unable to heed the warning, and wishing for an airlift. Speaking from Dubai, retired Maj. Gen Randy Manner (who notably makes recurring, Trump-critical appearances on CNN) told Erin Barnett: " As Americans we feel abandoned. I've talked to two embassy personnel at two different embassies -- they are in survival mode, quite frankly because, as we know, the administration State Department reduced their budget by almost one half over the past year." Local embassies and consulates may be of little help. Not only has their staffing been reduced due to the war on Iran, but some of them have been beset...
Block's recent headcount reduction and accelerating profitability improvements position the stock for further gains, according to HSBC. The bank upgraded the payments technology stock to buy from hold. Analyst Saul Martinez also lifted his price target to $77 from $70, which signals upside of 19%. The stock soared 17% on Friday after it said it was laying off more than 4,000 employees from its tot...
Block's recent headcount reduction and accelerating profitability improvements position the stock for further gains, according to HSBC. The bank upgraded the payments technology stock to buy from hold. Analyst Saul Martinez also lifted his price target to $77 from $70, which signals upside of 19%. The stock soared 17% on Friday after it said it was laying off more than 4,000 employees from its total workforce of over 10,000 people. "We are choosing to shift how we operate at a time when our business is accelerating and we see an opportunity to move faster with smaller, highly talented teams using AI to automate more work," CFO Amrita Ahuja said last week. XYZ 5D mountain XYZ 5-day chart Martinez said that Block's headcount reduction is not coming from a position of weakness, but rather after a year of healthy financial and operating performance. The analyst said the downsizing should increase its earnings power, underpinning a more constructive stance on the name. "Materially raising earnings estimates after Q4 2025 results; accelerating profitability improvements bode well for 2027e," he wrote. "Even though risks associated with the rapid growth in lending activity should be monitored, the combination of healthy gross profit growth, ample operating margin expansion, and a material de-rating of the stock in the past year (despite the rally since reporting Q4 2025 results) has led to an attractive risk-reward profile, in our view." Meanwhile, Martinez sees upside to consensus for Block's 2027 estimates. "Management noted that earnings power improvements from the headcount reduction would not be fully reflected until H2 2026, with c60% of the expected 2026 adjusted operating earnings occurring in H2 2026," he said. "This suggests to us that 'exit rate' Q4 2026 adjusted EPS and operating earnings levels will make it clear that 2027e consensus estimates are too low."
Kontoor Brands press release ( KTB ): Q4 Non-GAAP EPS of $1.73 beats by $0.09 . Revenue of $1.02B (+45.9% Y/Y) beats by $43.82M . Adjusted gross margin of 46.8 percent increased 210 basis points compared to prior year. Inventory of $567 million decreased $198 million from the third quarter, representing a 26 percent decrease from the third quarter. The Company made a $200 million voluntary term lo...
Kontoor Brands press release ( KTB ): Q4 Non-GAAP EPS of $1.73 beats by $0.09 . Revenue of $1.02B (+45.9% Y/Y) beats by $43.82M . Adjusted gross margin of 46.8 percent increased 210 basis points compared to prior year. Inventory of $567 million decreased $198 million from the third quarter, representing a 26 percent decrease from the third quarter. The Company made a $200 million voluntary term loan payment. The Company repurchased $25 million of shares. As previously announced, the Company’s Board of Directors declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.53 per share. Full Year 2026 Outlook Revenue expected to be in the range of $3.40 to $3.45 billion vs. $3.45B consensus , representing an increase of approximately 9 percent compared to prior year Adjusted gross margin expected to be in the range of 47.2 percent to 47.4 percent, representing an increase of 60 to 80 basis points compared to prior year Adjusted operating income expected to be in the range of $506 million to $512 million, representing an increase of 8 percent to 9 percent compared to prior year Adjusted EPS expected to be in the range of $6.40 to $6.50 vs. $5.96 consensus , representing an increase of 15 percent to 16 percent compared to prior year Cash from operations expected to be approximately $425 million The Company expects to make voluntary term loan payments of $225 million and to achieve a net leverage ratio below 1.5 times by year-end More on Kontoor Brands Kontoor Brands: Too Many Challenges To Justify An Upgrade Kontoor Brands: Wrangled Into A Risky Setup - Sell Kontoor Brands: Back In The Undervalued Zone Kontoor Brands Q4 2025 Earnings Preview Is Kontoor Brands' new severance package a sign of more exec departures? -- analyst
Eoneren/E+ via Getty Images March 2nd was a great day for shareholders of telecommunications infrastructure company Uniti Group ( UNIT ). Shares of the business closed up 7% after management announced financial results covering the final quarter of the company's 2025 fiscal year. Although earnings per share fell short of analysts' expectations, revenue came in higher than what was anticipated. Ove...
Eoneren/E+ via Getty Images March 2nd was a great day for shareholders of telecommunications infrastructure company Uniti Group ( UNIT ). Shares of the business closed up 7% after management announced financial results covering the final quarter of the company's 2025 fiscal year. Although earnings per share fell short of analysts' expectations, revenue came in higher than what was anticipated. Overall, the company did quite well from a cash flow perspective over 2025 in its entirety, exceeding previous forecasts. But in the near term, we could see a bit of downward pressure as profitability dips in 2026. The good news is that, with shares of the business trading at levels that I would consider to be attractive and with management actively working on selling off non-core assets in order to reduce debt, I believe that the business justifies a very bullish outlook. This is nothing new to me. Back in early December of last year, I reaffirmed the company as a 'strong buy' candidate. This was driven in large part by the transformative merger that the business entered into with Windstream. Key parts of the combined business are now growing, and management expects further expansion over the next few years. Debt is admittedly higher than I would like it to be. But when you take the picture in its totality, it's clear to me that this prospect justifies a very bullish outlook. The fact that shares are up 18.3% since my previous article about the business, at a time when the S&P 500 has moved up only 0.8%, signals to me that the market might finally be coming around to my bullish assessment. Let's focus on the future Normally when I analyze a publicly traded company, I like to put a great deal of emphasis on recent financial performance. But honestly, that is a bit difficult to do when it comes to Uniti Group at this moment. This is because the company, back in August of 2025, completed its merger with Windstream, undoing a previous spin-off by Windstream of Uniti Group years a...
The software brings together a huge range of military information, from satellite data to intelligence reports, which can then be analysed by commercial AI systems such as Claude to help make "faster, more efficient, and ultimately more lethal decisions where that's appropriate", Louis Mosley, the head of Palantir's UK operations said.
The software brings together a huge range of military information, from satellite data to intelligence reports, which can then be analysed by commercial AI systems such as Claude to help make "faster, more efficient, and ultimately more lethal decisions where that's appropriate", Louis Mosley, the head of Palantir's UK operations said.
Tokenization is crypto's attempt to turn paperwork and creaky old databases into highly efficient software. Both Ethereum (ETH +0.71%) and XRP (XRP 0.32%) stand to gain quite a bit, assuming that tokenization continues to take off as many expect. Here's why this trend could send the prices of these coins soaring during the coming years. This is a small market with very big ambitions In a nutshell,...
Tokenization is crypto's attempt to turn paperwork and creaky old databases into highly efficient software. Both Ethereum (ETH +0.71%) and XRP (XRP 0.32%) stand to gain quite a bit, assuming that tokenization continues to take off as many expect. Here's why this trend could send the prices of these coins soaring during the coming years. This is a small market with very big ambitions In a nutshell, asset tokenization means representing the ownership claims on traditional assets like stocks or bonds using tokens recorded on a blockchain. Those tokens can either be used solely for record keeping, or they can be used as tradeable contracts to make the underlying assets more readily transferable than they would be otherwise. Per some estimates, there could be as much as $30 trillion in tokenized assets by 2030. More reasonable estimates, like from Boston Consulting Group, suggest a total closer to $16 trillion in tokenized assets in the same time frame. But so far, the value actually sitting on public chains remains modest. As of March 2, there was about $25.9 billion in tokenized assets that can be traded, with Ethereum holding about $15.4 billion, or 59% of that total, and the XRP Ledger (XRPL) holding a far smaller share of $461 million. Expand CRYPTO : ETH Ethereum Today's Change ( 0.71 %) $ 13.79 Current Price $ 1963.46 Key Data Points Market Cap $237B Day's Range $ 1923.84 - $ 2072.00 52wk Range $ 1398.62 - $ 4946.05 Volume 27B So if the estimates described above are even remotely in the ballpark of being correct, there's a tremendous amount of growth in store, and the chains that are positioned to be the home for the influx of tokenized assets will be very likely to flourish. Here's why Ethereum and XRP are already in the right spots. Why Ethereum looks stronger now, and why XRP could catch up Ethereum is starting the race to capture tokenized asset inflows with scale on its side. Aside from the tokenized assets already on its chain, it has about $164.6 billion in...
Key Points A large volume of assets are expected to move onto blockchains for management during the next few years. Ethereum is the logical first stop for those assets to flow to. XRP is building an important edge that might make it the favorite in the long term. 10 stocks we like better than XRP › Tokenization is crypto's attempt to turn paperwork and creaky old databases into highly efficient so...
Key Points A large volume of assets are expected to move onto blockchains for management during the next few years. Ethereum is the logical first stop for those assets to flow to. XRP is building an important edge that might make it the favorite in the long term. 10 stocks we like better than XRP › Tokenization is crypto's attempt to turn paperwork and creaky old databases into highly efficient software. Both Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) and XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) stand to gain quite a bit, assuming that tokenization continues to take off as many expect. Here's why this trend could send the prices of these coins soaring during the coming years. Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue » This is a small market with very big ambitions In a nutshell, asset tokenization means representing the ownership claims on traditional assets like stocks or bonds using tokens recorded on a blockchain. Those tokens can either be used solely for record keeping, or they can be used as tradeable contracts to make the underlying assets more readily transferable than they would be otherwise. Per some estimates, there could be as much as $30 trillion in tokenized assets by 2030. More reasonable estimates, like from Boston Consulting Group, suggest a total closer to $16 trillion in tokenized assets in the same time frame. But so far, the value actually sitting on public chains remains modest. As of March 2, there was about $25.9 billion in tokenized assets that can be traded, with Ethereum holding about $15.4 billion, or 59% of that total, and the XRP Ledger (XRPL) holding a far smaller share of $461 million. So if the estimates described above are even remotely in the ballpark of being correct, there's a tremendous amount of growth in store, and the chains that are positioned to be the home for the influx of tokenized assets ...