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Technology Stocks : John, Mike & Tom's Wild World of Stocks -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John Pitera who wrote (2623)	12/4/2001 9:21:57 PM
From: John Pitera	Respond to of 2850

AZO--- a stock on a Roll...--valuation will come into play at some point 18:35 ET AutoZone (AZO) 66.59 +0.32: AutoZone is the number one retailer of auto parts and accessories. Most of its sales are to do-it-yourself customers. And no, they don't do tires nor do they repair cars -- they focus on an everyday low price for parts. The stock has been a monster, having doubled in six months. After the bell, the company proved why as it reported Q1 (Nov) EPS of $0.76, $0.16 better than the Multex consensus on 11% sales growth. You don't normally think of auto parts retailer as a strong growth stock, but suspend your disbelief for a moment. Growth is accelerating with the increase of cars and light trucks 7 years and older, the vehicles AZO's typical customers drive. Importantly, growth in this industry is not hurt by the economic slowdown. In fact, the number of miles driven may actually increase with lower gas prices and as people choose driving over flying. The more miles, the more maintenance...While the overall industry is growing, AZO is doing a great job competitively as it continues to gain market share thanks to new merchandise and more effective advertising. Also, aggressive expense discipline is helping AZO restore and begin exceeding its historically strong EBIT margins...Is the stock expensive? At a current p/e multiple of 23x, it's reasonable given its market leading position and 17% EPS growth expected next fiscal year. It's also become a hot growth stock story among analysts. Expect competitors O'Reilly Auto (ORLY 32.67 +0.23) and Pep Boys (PBY 16.70 +0.40) to trade higher tomorrow as well. -- Robert J. Reid, Briefing.com