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

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

O’Reilly Automotive Price Performance

ORLY traded down $11.03 during trading on Friday, hitting $1,213.37. 437,650 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 367,720. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1,170.83 and a 200 day moving average of $1,094.85. O’Reilly Automotive has a 12-month low of $914.50 and a 12-month high of $1,255.30.

O’Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $11.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $4.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.42 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $10.72 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that O’Reilly Automotive will post 40.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at O’Reilly Automotive

In other news, SVP Christopher Andrew Mancini sold 1,557 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,125.00, for a total value of $1,751,625.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman David E. Oreilly sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,118.88, for a total value of $1,118,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 183,583 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $205,407,347.04. The trade was a 0.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 16,322 shares of company stock valued at $18,280,698 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On O’Reilly Automotive

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,084,209 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,739,462,000 after purchasing an additional 75,837 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,850,655 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,954,404,000 after acquiring an additional 57,194 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 73.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,725,316 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,986,874,000 after acquiring an additional 728,040 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,479,166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,700,513,000 after acquiring an additional 24,135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,425,724 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,505,649,000 after acquiring an additional 19,211 shares in the last quarter. 85.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ORLY has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,250.00 to $1,325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of O’Reilly Automotive from $1,115.00 to $1,286.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of O’Reilly Automotive from $1,300.00 to $1,375.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $1,275.00 price target on shares of O’Reilly Automotive in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of O’Reilly Automotive from $1,204.00 to $1,290.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, O’Reilly Automotive has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,242.13.

About O’Reilly Automotive

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.