O'Reilly shares rise 3.8% after hours after raising 2026 forecast

O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) said on Oct. 28 it posted record third-quarter revenue and earnings, with diluted earnings per share of 97 cents, up 14% from a year earlier.

Shares rose 3.8% in after-hours trading as of 5:10 p.m. ET, from a regular-session close of $90.23.

Revenue rose 9% to $5.12 billion, in line with the $5.11 billion consensus estimate compiled by Finnhub. Operating income rose 13% to $1.10 billion.

The quarter included a $39 million benefit from tariff refunds received during the third quarter, the company said.

CEO Brad Beckham said the growth came from “share gains on both sides of our business, with double-digit growth in our professional business and mid-single digit growth in DIY.” He said the two-year comparable store sales stack was 12.8%.

Here's how the company did:

• Revenue: $5.12 billion vs. $4.71 billion a year earlier, against $5.11 billion expected, according to Finnhub
• Diluted EPS: 97 cents vs. 85 cents a year earlier, against 95 cents expected, according to Finnhub
• Net income: $786 million vs. $726 million a year earlier
• Operating income: $1.10 billion vs. $976 million a year earlier

Comparable store sales

Comparable store sales rose 7.2% in the quarter, on top of a 5.6% gain a year earlier. For the first nine months, they rose 7.1%, on top of 4.5%.

Sales to do-it-yourself customers were $2.45 billion, up from $2.30 billion. Sales to professional service provider customers reached $2.60 billion, up from $2.31 billion.

2026 guidance

The company raised its full-year comparable store sales forecast to 5.5% to 6.5%, from the 4.0% to 6.0% range it gave in its previous results release on July 29.

Gross margin guidance rose to 51.6% to 52.1%, from 51.5% to 52.0%. Operating income as a percentage of sales is now expected at 19.5% to 20.0%, from 19.3% to 19.8%.

Diluted EPS guidance is $3.25 to $3.35, from $3.20 to $3.30. Total revenue is forecast at $19.0 billion to $19.3 billion, from $18.9 billion to $19.2 billion.

The company said the updates incorporate the tariff refund benefit and its margin expectations for the fourth quarter.

Stores, cash and buybacks

The company opened 173 net new stores in the first nine months and is on track for its goal of 225 to 235 net new openings in 2026. It operated 6,758 stores at Sept. 30.

It repurchased 11.8 million shares in the third quarter for $1.03 billion, and 38.5 million shares for $3.47 billion in the first nine months. Through the release date it bought 2.3 million more shares for $204 million. About $727 million remains under its current authorization.

Net cash provided by operating activities was $2.6 billion year to date, and free cash flow was $1.73 billion. The company issued $2.45 billion of long-term debt during the first nine months. Long-term debt stood at $7.71 billion at Sept. 30, up from $5.92 billion a year earlier.

The company will host a conference call on Oct. 29 at 10 a.m. Central Time to discuss the results and its expectations.