O'Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY) Short Interest Update

O'Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 802,700 shares, a decline of 16.7% from the February 28th total of 963,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 348,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days. Currently, 1.4% of the company's stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Mizuho lifted their target price on O'Reilly Automotive from $1,305.00 to $1,400.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of O'Reilly Automotive from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $1,150.00 to $1,450.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of O'Reilly Automotive from $1,200.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of O'Reilly Automotive from $1,416.00 to $1,453.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of O'Reilly Automotive from $1,400.00 to $1,450.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, O'Reilly Automotive currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $1,390.81.

O'Reilly Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ORLY traded down $52.02 on Friday, hitting $1,389.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,113,634 shares, compared to its average volume of 368,778. The company has a market capitalization of $79.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.79. O'Reilly Automotive has a 12 month low of $947.49 and a 12 month high of $1,458.37. The stock's 50-day moving average is $1,341.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,251.62.

O'Reilly Automotive's stock is going to split on the morning of Tuesday, June 10th. The 15-1 split was announced on Thursday, March 13th. The newly created shares will be payable to shareholders after the closing bell on Monday, June 9th.

O'Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $9.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.73 by $0.23. O'Reilly Automotive had a net margin of 14.28% and a negative return on equity of 166.88%. Equities analysts expect that O'Reilly Automotive will post 43.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Mark Joseph Merz sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,325.00, for a total value of $662,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 275 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $364,375. The trade was a 64.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Jason Lee Tarrant sold 1,992 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,339.10, for a total transaction of $2,667,487.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,398 shares in the company, valued at $1,872,061.80. The trade was a 58.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,894 shares of company stock worth $10,409,618. 1.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On O'Reilly Automotive

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of O'Reilly Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at $867,190,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in O'Reilly Automotive by 73.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,725,316 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,986,874,000 after buying an additional 728,040 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in O'Reilly Automotive by 205,600.0% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 503,965 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $597,602,000 after acquiring an additional 503,720 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in O'Reilly Automotive in the fourth quarter worth about $208,248,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in O'Reilly Automotive by 294.8% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 157,410 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $186,657,000 after acquiring an additional 117,542 shares in the last quarter. 85.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.