O'Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Argus

Key Points

• Argus has issued a buy rating on O'Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY) with a price target of $120.00, suggesting a potential upside of 17.77% from the current stock price.
• The company's recent earnings report matched analysts' consensus with $0.78 earnings per share, and revenue of $4.53 billion, slightly below expectations.
• Institutional investors have significantly increased their stakes in O'Reilly Automotive, with Vanguard Group enhancing its holdings by over 1,400% in the second quarter.

Argus started coverage on shares of O'Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY - Get Free Report) in a research report issued on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The brokerage set a "buy" rating and a $120.00 price target on the specialty retailer's stock. Argus' price objective indicates a potential upside of 17.77% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Barclays reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $86.00 price objective on shares of O'Reilly Automotive in a report on Friday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of O'Reilly Automotive in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on O'Reilly Automotive from $107.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on O'Reilly Automotive from $101.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on O'Reilly Automotive from $103.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, O'Reilly Automotive presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $103.38.

O'Reilly Automotive Stock Down 1.7%

ORLY stock opened at $101.89 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.45 billion, a PE ratio of 36.42, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.56. O'Reilly Automotive has a twelve month low of $73.11 and a twelve month high of $104.86. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $93.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.46.

O'Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.78. The business had revenue of $4.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.54 billion. O'Reilly Automotive had a negative return on equity of 181.53% and a net margin of 14.15%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $10.55 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that O'Reilly Automotive will post 43.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Ramon Parises Odems sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.70, for a total value of $2,720,900.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 240 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,767.20. This represents a 99.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Shari Lynne Reaves sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.81, for a total value of $207,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 12,826 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,331,467.06. This trade represents a 13.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 69,840 shares of company stock valued at $6,629,176 over the last 90 days. 1.01% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of O'Reilly Automotive

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ORLY. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in O'Reilly Automotive by 1,404.9% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,834,967 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $7,105,396,000 after buying an additional 73,596,571 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of O'Reilly Automotive by 1,443.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 23,679,108 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,130,866,000 after purchasing an additional 22,144,563 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of O'Reilly Automotive by 1,317.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 17,651,104 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,590,894,000 after purchasing an additional 16,406,181 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in shares of O'Reilly Automotive by 1,820.9% during the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 14,116,976 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,272,363,000 after purchasing an additional 13,382,074 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of O'Reilly Automotive by 1,467.8% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 9,152,716 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $824,934,000 after purchasing an additional 8,568,904 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.00% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.