Monro Q4 Revenue at $273.8M, Below Consensus

Reports Q4 revenue $273.8M, consensus $283.48M. Comparable store sales, adjusted for days, increased 2.8% in the prior year period. Comparable store sales, unadjusted for days, decreased 3.6% in the prior year period. "Our fourth quarter results were challenged by a difficult operating environment in the full-service auto aftermarket. As we believe was the case with other tire sellers, this was primarily driven by persistent weakness in tire units that began in fiscal January and continued throughout the quarter. In addition, severe winter weather in fiscal February across our geographic footprint forced temporary store closures and significantly reduced customer traffic during what should have been a busy winter maintenance period. We experienced a 5% decline in tire units during the quarter, which we believe aligns with broader industry trends. Our tire category was pressured as consumers continued to defer spending in higher-ticket categories and gravitated toward lower-cost alternatives. Both comparable store sales and tire units showed sequential improvement in fiscal March, partially recovering from the February weather disruptions. Store traffic also improved sequentially, giving us confidence that underlying demand for our services remains intact, despite a challenging backdrop. Despite the overall sales challenges, our higher-margin service categories continued to deliver value to our many full-service customers and reinforces our strength as a full-service provider. This capability serves as proof that our store teams are effectively utilizing ConfiDrive to identify and communicate service needs to customers. Our gross margin performance was a bright spot, expanding 90 basis points year-over-year to 33.9%. This improvement demonstrates productivity gains from our labor force, even as we navigate cost pressures and shifting customer preferences toward lower-tier products. Importantly, we maintained our marketing investment throughout the quarter, despite the sales headwinds. Monro delivered positive comp store sales in fiscal 2026 for the first time in three years, closed 145 stores that were not going to reach our profit expectations, and dramatically improved our inventory position. And, while the fourth quarter tested our resolve, our results for the full year of fiscal 2026 also validate that our strategic initiatives are working well over time and position us to capitalize when market conditions improve", said Peter Fitzsimmons, CEO, "The traction we're seeing in some districts across our chain in tires and service categories reinforces that we have the ability to drive significant value for our customers that we believe will translate to sales and profit growth."