O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY) Short Interest Down 12.7% in February

O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY) saw a significant decrease in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 850,600 shares, a decrease of 12.7% from the January 31st total of 974,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 332,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ORLY. UBS Group boosted their price objective on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,400.00 to $1,535.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Guggenheim upped their price target on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,400.00 to $1,475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of O’Reilly Automotive from $1,200.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of O’Reilly Automotive from $1,110.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of O’Reilly Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $1,150.00 to $1,450.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,390.81.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Mark Joseph Merz sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,325.00, for a total value of $662,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $364,375. This represents a 64.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Maria Sastre sold 248 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,316.17, for a total value of $326,410.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,278,001.07. This trade represents a 20.34 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,894 shares of company stock worth $10,409,618 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On O’Reilly Automotive

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORLY. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC increased its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 64 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 8 shares during the period. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc grew its holdings in O’Reilly Automotive by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 605 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $697,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in O’Reilly Automotive by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 115 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $132,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 1,863 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,145,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Finally, L.M. Kohn & Company raised its holdings in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. L.M. Kohn & Company now owns 654 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $753,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.00% of the company’s stock.

O’Reilly Automotive Stock Down 0.9 %

O’Reilly Automotive stock opened at $1,319.01 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $1,277.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,217.40. The company has a market cap of $75.54 billion, a PE ratio of 32.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.91. O’Reilly Automotive has a twelve month low of $947.49 and a twelve month high of $1,389.05.

O’Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $9.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.73 by $0.23. O’Reilly Automotive had a negative return on equity of 166.88% and a net margin of 14.28%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that O’Reilly Automotive will post 43.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.