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

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

Insider Activity

In other O’Reilly Automotive news, Director Maria Sastre sold 248 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,316.17, for a total transaction of $326,410.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,278,001.07. This represents a 20.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Gregory L. Henslee sold 3,073 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,315.15, for a total value of $4,041,455.95. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,397 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,988,764.55. The trade was a 21.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,894 shares of company stock valued at $10,409,618. 1.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On O’Reilly Automotive

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC increased its position in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 14.3% in the 4th quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 64 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 8 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC grew its stake in O’Reilly Automotive by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 215 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $255,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its position in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 262 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $311,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Alcosta Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Alcosta Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,156 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,742,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in O’Reilly Automotive by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 623 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the period. 85.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

O’Reilly Automotive Stock Performance

O’Reilly Automotive stock traded down $0.78 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $1,431.80. The stock had a trading volume of 370,033 shares, compared to its average volume of 363,403. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,327.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,244.26. O’Reilly Automotive has a twelve month low of $947.49 and a twelve month high of $1,458.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.96 billion, a PE ratio of 35.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.91.

O’Reilly Automotive’s stock is set to split on Tuesday, June 10th. The 15-1 split was announced on Thursday, March 13th. The newly minted shares will be distributed to shareholders after the closing bell on Monday, June 9th.

O’Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $9.96 earnings per share 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 predict that O’Reilly Automotive will post 43.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on ORLY. Morgan Stanley raised shares of O’Reilly Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $1,150.00 to $1,450.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Wedbush boosted their price target on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,200.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,315.00 to $1,325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,475.00 target price on shares of O’Reilly Automotive in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,110.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, O’Reilly Automotive presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,390.81.

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.