May 21 Reuters AutoZone beat estimates for thirdquarter profit on Tuesday, driven by strong demand for automotive parts as more Americans held on to their ageing cars amid higher prices and wait times for newer models.

Quarterly net sales at the auto parts supplier, which competes with Advance Auto Parts and O39;Reilly Automotive, rose 3.5 to about 4.24 billion.

Analysts on average were expecting AutoZone to report thirdquarter net sales of 4.29 billion.

On an adjusted basis, the company earned 36.69 per share in the quarter ended May 4, compared with analysts estimates of 35.96 per share, according to LSEG data.

However, domestic samestore sales in the quarter remained flat from a year earlier.

Reporting by Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D39;Silva

Source Reuters