How would the market react to the news that AutoZone was reducing or eliminating its share repurchases after years of consistently following that strategy? Did the market view AutoZone's share repurchases as a cash dividend or was it indifferent about whether cash flows were distributed by repurchasing shares or paying a cash dividend? In any case, Johnson wondered if any move away from repurchasing shares after so many years might cause the stock price to fall, regardless of how the cash flows were ultimately spent. Or would AutoZone's stock price continue to appreciate as it had in the past so long as it continued to produce strong cash flows?