First Merchants Corp Reduces Position in O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY)

First Merchants Corp decreased its holdings in O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,968 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 56 shares during the period. First Merchants Corp’s holdings in O’Reilly Automotive were worth $8,263,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ORLY. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of O’Reilly Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in O’Reilly Automotive during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in O’Reilly Automotive by 383.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 29 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in O’Reilly Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of O’Reilly Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 85.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

O’Reilly Automotive Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ ORLY opened at $1,335.68 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $77.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.85, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.94. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,246.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,193.24. O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. has a 12-month low of $947.49 and a 12-month high of $1,350.27.

O’Reilly Automotive (NASDAQ:ORLY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $9.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.73 by $0.23. O’Reilly Automotive had a negative return on equity of 166.88% and a net margin of 14.28%. On average, equities analysts forecast that O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. will post 44.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at O’Reilly Automotive

In other news, Director Andrea Weiss sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,224.07, for a total transaction of $734,442.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $856,849. This represents a 46.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Jeffery Thomas Loafman sold 620 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,240.39, for a total value of $769,041.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5 shares in the company, valued at $6,201.95. This trade represents a 99.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,968 shares of company stock valued at $2,492,394 over the last 90 days. 1.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on ORLY. Morgan Stanley upgraded O’Reilly Automotive from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $1,150.00 to $1,450.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays upped their price target on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,110.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on O’Reilly Automotive from $1,325.00 to $1,425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of O’Reilly Automotive from $1,400.00 to $1,450.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of O’Reilly Automotive from $1,400.00 to $1,475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $1,390.81.

O’Reilly Automotive 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.