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O'Reilly Q3 Earnings Miss Expectations, Guidance Revised

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O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (ORLY - Free Report) reported third-quarter 2024 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $11.41, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $11.53. However, the bottom line increased from $10.72 reported in the prior-year quarter. The automotive parts retailer registered quarterly revenues of $4.36 billion, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.43 billion. The top line, however, increased 3.8% year over year.

Stay up-to-date with the quarterly releases: See Zacks Earnings Calendar.

During the quarter, comparable store sales grew 1.5%. The company opened 47 new stores in the United States, Mexico and Canada during the quarter. The total store count was 6,291 as of Sept. 30, 2024.

O'Reilly Automotive, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

O'Reilly Automotive, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

O'Reilly Automotive, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | O'Reilly Automotive, Inc. Quote

Financials, Share Repurchase & Costs

In the reported quarter, selling, general and administrative expenses rose 7% year over year to $1.35 billion. Operating income remained flat year over year at $897 million. Net income was $665 million, up from $650 million in the year-ago quarter.

During the reported quarter, O’Reilly repurchased 0.5 million shares for $541 million at an average price of $1,084.28 per share. After the end of the quarter until the release date, ORLY repurchased an additional 0.1 million shares of common stock for a total investment of $70 million at an average price of $1,170.55 per share. As of Oct. 23, the company had nearly $898 million remaining under the current share repurchase authorization.

It had cash and cash equivalents of $115.6 million at the end of the reported quarter, down from $279.1 million recorded as of 2023-end. Its long-term debt was $5.36 billion, lower than $5.57 billion as of Dec. 31, 2023.

During the reported quarter, O’Reilly generated $772 million in cash from operating activities compared with the year-ago period’s $2.43 billion. Capital expenditures totaled $258.3 million compared with $732.9 million in the year-ago period. Free cash flow was $500 million, down 69.8% year over year.

ORLY’s Updated 2024 Outlook

For 2024, O’Reilly estimates total revenues in the range of $16.6-$16.8 billion, down from the prior guidance of $16.6-$16.9 billion. It now expects earnings per share in the range of $40.60-$41.10, down from the previous estimate of $40.75-$41.25. The outlook for comparable store sales growth was revised downward to 2-3% from 2-4%. The outlook for free cash flow remained unchanged at $1.8-$2.1 billion. Capital expenditure guidance remained unchanged in the range of $900 million to $1 billion. The company intends to open 190-200 stores this year.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

ORLY currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the auto space are Modine Manufacturing Company (MOD - Free Report) , BYD Company Limited (BYDDY - Free Report) and Suzuki Motor Corporation (SZKMY - Free Report) , each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MOD’s fiscal 2025 sales and earnings suggests year-over-year growth of 8.44% and 18.77%, respectively. Earnings per share (EPS) estimates for fiscal 2025 and 2026 have improved by a penny and 8 cents, respectively, in the past 30 days.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BYDDY’s 2024 sales and earnings suggests year-over-year growth of 21.88% and 19.52%, respectively. EPS estimates for 2024 and 2025 have improved by 8 cents and 14 cents, respectively, in the past 30 days.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for SZKMY’s fiscal 2025 sales and earnings suggests year-over-year growth of 7.36% and 22.51%, respectively. EPS estimates for fiscal 2025 and 2026 have improved by 78 cents and 99 cents, respectively, in the past 60 days.

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