Short Interest in O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY) Drops By 19.3%

O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 935,900 shares, a decline of 19.3% from the October 15th total of 1,160,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 324,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.9 days. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Activity at O’Reilly Automotive

In related news, Chairman David E. Oreilly sold 1,000 shares of O’Reilly Automotive stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,118.88, for a total value of $1,118,880.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 183,583 shares in the company, valued at $205,407,347.04. The trade was a 0.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lawrence P. Oreilly sold 13,765 shares of O’Reilly Automotive stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,119.52, for a total transaction of $15,410,192.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 141,589 shares in the company, valued at approximately $158,511,717.28. This trade represents a 8.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,322 shares of company stock worth $18,280,698 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On O’Reilly Automotive

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 1,384 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,562,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 462 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $522,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive during the 1st quarter valued at about $254,000. Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,827 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,062,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 14.0% during the 1st quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 612 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $671,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on ORLY. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of O’Reilly Automotive to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America raised their price objective on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,204.00 to $1,290.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen raised their price objective on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,300.00 to $1,375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $1,200.00 price objective on shares of O’Reilly Automotive in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,215.00 to $1,230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,242.13.

O’Reilly Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ORLY opened at $1,224.40 on Friday. O’Reilly Automotive has a fifty-two week low of $914.50 and a fifty-two week high of $1,255.30. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,167.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,092.14. The firm has a market cap of $70.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.92.

O’Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $11.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.53 by ($0.12). O’Reilly Automotive had a negative return on equity of 155.25% and a net margin of 14.52%. The business had revenue of $4.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.42 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $10.72 EPS. O’Reilly Automotive’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that O’Reilly Automotive will post 40.81 earnings per share for the current year.

O’Reilly Automotive Company Profile

O’Reilly Automotive, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a retailer and supplier of automotive aftermarket parts, tools, supplies, equipment, and accessories in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. The company provides new and remanufactured automotive hard parts and maintenance items, such as alternators, batteries, brake system components, belts, chassis parts, driveline parts, engine parts, fuel pumps, hoses, starters, temperature control, water pumps, antifreeze, appearance products, engine additives, filters, fluids, lighting products, and oil and wiper blades; and accessories, including floor mats, seat covers, and truck accessories.