Monro Muffler Brake (NASDAQ:MNRO) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.04 EPS

Monro Muffler Brake (NASDAQ:MNRO) announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The auto parts company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.04, Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $293.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $295.19 million. Monro Muffler Brake had a positive return on equity of 2.77% and a negative net margin of 1.60%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.19 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Monro Muffler Brake’s conference call:

• Monro reports clear operational momentum, delivering four consecutive quarters of positive comparable store sales and a 60 basis point year-over-year expansion in gross margin to 34.9%, signaling improving profitability trends.
• Management is scaling a multi-channel marketing push—expanded digital media, CRM activation, and call center support now covering over 830 stores—which they say has driven incremental calls, sales, and gross profit dollars and will roll out further.
• The company completed a major store optimization (145 underperforming stores closed) and has monetized real estate aggressively, exiting 57 leases and selling 25 locations for cumulative proceeds of $22.8 million YTD, with the disposition process expected to largely finish in upcoming quarters.
• Q3 results were mixed—total sales fell 4% (largely from store closures) but continuing-store comps rose 1.2% and tire sales were up 5%; adjusted operating income and adjusted EPS were slightly weaker year-over-year, reflecting transition costs and reinvestment in marketing.
• Financial position and liquidity remain strong with $48 million of cash from operations YTD, net bank debt of ~$40 million, approximately $425 million of available capacity on the credit facility, maintained dividend distributions, and $25–$35 million of planned capex.

Monro Muffler Brake Stock Performance

MNRO stock traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $19.83. 567,291 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 733,523. Monro Muffler Brake has a twelve month low of $12.19 and a twelve month high of $21.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $595.36 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -29.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.93.

Monro Muffler Brake Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 2nd were issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 2nd. Monro Muffler Brake’s payout ratio is -167.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on MNRO shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Monro Muffler Brake from $18.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Monro Muffler Brake from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Monro Muffler Brake in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.67.

Insider Transactions at Monro Muffler Brake

In other news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn bought 639,473 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $15.19 per share, with a total value of $9,713,594.87. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,439,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,442,293.66. The trade was a 16.83% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have acquired 1,278,132 shares of company stock valued at $20,815,969. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Monro Muffler Brake by 11.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 688,075 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $9,956,000 after buying an additional 68,862 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Monro Muffler Brake by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 141,635 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,049,000 after acquiring an additional 7,464 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Monro Muffler Brake by 85.2% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 79,839 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,155,000 after acquiring an additional 36,734 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new stake in shares of Monro Muffler Brake during the 1st quarter worth approximately $559,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Monro Muffler Brake by 139.8% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 27,904 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 16,268 shares during the period.

About Monro Muffler Brake

Monro Muffler Brake (NASDAQ:MNRO) is a leading provider of undercar repair and maintenance services for light vehicles in the United States. The company’s core offerings include brake systems, exhaust systems, steering and suspension repairs, tire sales and service, oil and lube changes, wheel alignment, multi-point inspections, and state vehicle inspections. Monro serves both retail customers and fleet accounts, focusing on fast, reliable service and preventive maintenance to help extend vehicle life and safety.

Headquartered in Rochester, New York, Monro was originally founded in 1957 and has grown through a combination of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.