Monro’s Pivot: From Aggressive Expansion to Margin Optimization

Addition by Subtraction: Why Monro Is 145 Stores Smaller but (Finally) Healthier

Monro Was Exhausted. Is It Finally Turning Around?

NASDAQ: MNRO
$21.00 • +0.86 (+4.27%) • As of Feb-06-2026, 4:00 PM ET

🎯  FunStock Index™: 8.3 / 10 🎯
Our playful-but-serious score blends insider behavior, valuation, momentum, and business quality. Score is strong, but slightly capped by execution risk and wage inflation.

🚗 The Business in One Pit Stop

Monro, Inc. runs one of the largest networks of automotive repair and tire shops in the U.S. If you’ve ever needed brakes, tires, shocks, or that mysterious “clunking noise” diagnosed before your car self-destructs, Monro lives in that world.

Founded in 1957 and headquartered in Fairport, New York, the company operates under a whole alphabet soup of brands: Monro Auto Service, Mr. Tire, Tire Choice, Car-X, Tire Warehouse, Ken Towery’s, Mountain View, Tire Barn, and more. In short: Monro fixes America’s aging cars—and business is surprisingly steady when people keep postponing new car purchases.

But for years, Monro tried to grow the old-fashioned way: more stores, more locations, more everything. That strategy eventually ran into a wall. Too many underperforming locations, bloated costs, and shrinking margins turned the company into something Wall Street politely calls “a restructuring story.”

Which brings us to 2025–2026: the era of corporate liposuction.

🔥 Trigger #1: The CEO Is Buying

When a CEO buys stock with their own money, that’s not a press release—it’s a personal bet.

• On Feb 3, 2026, Peter Fitzsimmons (CEO) bought 13,350 shares at $18.80, putting ~$250K of his own cash to work.

• That’s a +16% increase in his personal stake.

Translation: The guy steering the bus thinks the road ahead is better than the rearview mirror.

🦈 Trigger #2: Carl Icahn Joined the Pit Crew

And not just with pocket change.

• Carl Icahn bought over 1.2 million shares in November 2025

• Average prices in the $15–$17 range

• Total investment: ~$20+ million

• He now owns roughly ~15% of the company

Icahn doesn’t buy to admire the wallpaper. He buys when he smells change, pressure, opportunity, or all of the above.

🏛️ Trigger #3: Institutions Are Piled In (Almost Too Much)

Here’s where it gets spicy:

• ~19% insider ownership

• ~122% of shares held by institutions

• ~150% of the float held by institutions 🤯

• Over 255 institutions involved

Top holders include BlackRock (~16.6%), Vanguard, Adage, Cooper Creek, Morgan Stanley, GAMCO, and—yes—Carl Icahn himself.

This kind of ownership structure usually means:

• The stock is heavily scrutinized

• Liquidity can get weird

• If sentiment flips, moves can get fast and violent

🔍 For Monro (MNRO)'s Institutional Ownership breakdown, see here. 

🧨 Trigger #4: Shorts Are Brave (or Reckless)

• Short interest: ~19.2%

• Shares short: ~5.36M

• Days to cover: ~7.1

That’s not a casual bet against the stock. That’s a meaningful group of investors saying:

“We’re not convinced this turnaround sticks.”

Which, ironically, is exactly the kind of setup that makes rallies interesting when things go even slightly right.

🧑💼 Trigger #5: Analysts Are… Politely Skeptical

Consensus as of Feb 2026:

• Rating: Hold / cautious Buy

• Price targets: ~$16 to $26

• Average: ~$18–$21

In other words:
Wall Street is not throwing confetti yet. But it’s also not calling the tow truck.

Same-store sales are creeping up. Total revenue is down (because, well, 145 stores were closed). This is a classic “numbers look ugly before they look good” phase.

📉 Trigger #6: Still Down 76% from ATH

• All-time high: $89.72 (April 2019)

• Current: ~$21

• Down ~76.5%

Even a partial retracement would be meaningful. This isn’t a “back to glory days” story (yet anyway)—it’s a “not dying anymore” story. And those can still pay very well.

💰 Trigger #7: Valuation Looks… Reasonable

Some highlights:

• Price/Sales ~0.5x → Cheap for a service business

• Price/Book ~1.0x → Basically priced at balance-sheet value

• EV/Revenue < 1x → Market not pricing in heroics

• Dividend yield ~5.5% → You’re getting paid to wait

Not screaming “deep value” (based on trailing P/E of 24.81 or Forward P/E of 30.86) but very much whispering:

“This is no longer priced like perfection - or a disaster waiting to happen.”

🧾 Trigger #8: Earnings — The “Trimmed & Slimmed” Quarter

Q3 Fiscal 2026 was the first real proof-of-surgery quarter:

• 145 stores closed (dead weight gone)

• Revenue: $293.4M (down 4% — expected)

• Same-store sales: +1.2% (4th straight positive quarter)

• Gross margin: +60 bps YoY

• GAAP EPS: $0.35 (boosted by asset sales)

• Adjusted EPS: $0.16 (the “real” number, beat expectations)

• Dividend: $0.28/share (~5.5% yield)

Even better:

• Inventory cut by $28M in 9 months

• Operating expenses dropped

• Real estate from closed stores is turning into cash fuel

CEO Peter Fitzsimmons summed it up: fewer stores, better stores, tighter operations, more marketing where it actually works.

👉 Want the full picture? Dive into Monro (MNRO)'s financials here.

🧠 The Big Picture: “Addition by Subtraction”

Monro is no longer chasing empire-building. It’s chasing efficiency.

The Bull Case 🐂

• 🚘 Aging car fleet = more repairs, not fewer

• 🏪 Real estate sales provide cash cushion

• 💸 5.5% dividend pays you to be patient

• 🧮 Valuation puts a floor under the story

• 🦈 Icahn + insider buying = pressure for performance

The Bear Case 🐻

• 👨🔧 Wage inflation for mechanics is real

• 🔋 Some categories (batteries, alignments) remain weak or challenging

• 🧑💼 Consultants still on payroll (never a great sign)

• ⚡ EV transition could slowly erode parts of the business

• 🧾 Turnarounds always look best on PowerPoint first

💡💡💡 Curious about another deep oil exploration play?
Check our take on UnitedHealth Group.

🏁 The FUNanc1al Verdict

Monro is now a high-yield, slow-burn turnaround.
Not a rocket ship. Not a meme stock. Not a miracle.
But a cash-generating, asset-backed, discipline-first repair story in a world where people keep driving older cars longer.

If you want:

• 💰 Income

• 🛠️ Operational fixes

• 🐢 Slow but steady progress

MNRO is interesting.

If you want:

• 🚀 Fast growth

• 🎢 Big momentum

• 🤖 AI buzzwords

This is not your stock.

⚡ Quick Take / TL;DR

• CEO and Carl Icahn are buying

• 145 bad stores closed, margins improving

• Same-store sales back in positive territory

• 5.5% dividend pays you to wait

• Stock still down ~76% from highs

• Turnaround is real—but not risk-free

❓ FAQ

Is Monro a growth stock?
No. It’s a turnaround + income story.

Why is Icahn involved?
Because cost cuts, asset sales, and operational discipline create leverage for shareholders.

Is the dividend safe?
It’s attractive, but watch cash flow and margins closely. Not guaranteed forever.

What’s the biggest risk?
Labor costs, execution risk, and a weaker consumer delaying repairs.

What’s the upside?
Multiple expansion + steady cash + possible re-rating if margins keep improving.

👤 About the Author

Frédéric Marsanne is the founder of FUNanc1al — part market analyst, part storyteller, part accidental comedian. A longtime investor, entrepreneur, and venture-builder across tech, biotech, and fintech, he blends sharp insights with a twist of humor to help readers laugh, learn, live better lives, and invest a little wiser. When not decoding insider buys or poking fun at earnings calls, he’s building Cl1Q, writing fiction, painting, or discovering new passions to FUNalize.

🧾⚠️📢 Fun(anc1al) but Serious Disclaimer: 🧾⚠️📢

This article is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Investing may result in the loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Always do your own research or consult a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions, and remember: even well-aligned pit crews sometimes forget to tighten a wheel. 

Resist FOMO and never invest money you can’t afford to lose. 

We laugh, we analyze, we meme. 
We’re FUNancial advisors — not financial advisors. 😄📉📈

Invest at your own risk.🌪️📉
Love at any pace. Laugh at every turn. 😄
Be Happy. 😄😄

🧭 Looking for a Different Angle?

• 🕵️ Insider Purchases Center
• 📣 Follow the Pundits Hub
• 📈 Young Guns & Turnaround Stocks — Track More Growth (and Growing-Pain) Plays
• 😆 Stock Market Humor & Serious-ish Plays
• 🌍 See the world differently and check out more international market picks and fun takes. Explore International Investment Opportunities and value plays 💸 Cheap Stocks with (Maybe) Big Upside

😂 Laugh, Learn, Invest: funanc1al.com | Funanc1al: Where Even Finance Meets Funny