For all the talk of an improving economy, with households returning to pre-pandemic incomes, some Americans are still below the median line and have challenges. Almost half of renters are cost-burdened, meaning spending at least 30% of their income on shelter. And although used cars and trucks saw a drop of 10.4% year-over-year in August, according to the Consumer Price Index, they're still expensive.

At least, that's the point made by Placer.ai — which uses cell phone data to analyze foot traffic down to a property level — when looking at auto parts retailers AutoZone, O'Reilly Auto Parts, and NAPA Auto Parts. An increase in older cars on the road combined with the companies' markets have sustained their "pandemic-era success." It's a combination of economic conditions and demand for necessary transportation.

The "captured markets" of the three companies have incomes below the "nationwide baseline," which would be the median for the country, or $80,610 in 2023. That's half the country. More specifically, the median household income of new car dealerships' customers was $75,600. For NAPA, it was $66,700; $63,800 for O'Reilly; and $64,100 for AutoZone.