Morgan Stanley Reiterates Equal-Weight, Raises PT On AutoZone On Positive Risk/Reward

In a report published Wednesday, Morgan Stanley analyst Simeon Gutman reiterated an Equal-Weight rating on AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE: AZO), and raised the price target from $620.00 to $680.00.

In the report, Morgan Stanley noted, "AZO has been one of the most consistent growth stories in our space over the past several years. This steadiness was once again on display in Q2 with the company's third consecutive quarter of 15.6% EPS growth. Comps rose a much better than expected 3.6% with core gross margin (ex-IMC acquisition) up ~40 bps. We estimate same-store DIFM comps in the mid to high single digits, which is on pace to slightly above DIFM giants ORLY and GPC. We estimate DIY only comps in the 1%-2% range, which is solid on top of AZO's industry leading DIY platform (~$1.3 million DIY sales per store)."

AutoZone closed on Tuesday at $651.90.