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O’Reilly Automotive’s quarterly sales rose 9% to $5.12 billion, while a $39 million tariff-refund benefit helped lift earnings at the auto-parts retailer.
The company reported Wednesday that comparable U.S. store sales increased 7.2% in the third quarter ended September 30. CEO Brad Beckham said sales to professional customers grew at a double-digit rate, while the do-it-yourself business grew at a mid-single-digit rate.
Net income increased 8% to $786 million from $726 million a year earlier. Diluted earnings per share rose faster, up 14% to $0.97 from $0.85, as the diluted share count fell to 812 million from 853 million.
Tariff refunds help earnings
Beckham said the quarter’s sales growth and the $39 million benefit from tariff refunds drove the increase in per-share earnings. The company’s results therefore include that benefit, alongside its retail sales growth.
Operating income rose 13% to $1.10 billion. The operating margin increased to 21.4% from 20.7% a year earlier, while gross margin rose to 52.4% from 51.9%.
O’Reilly repurchased 11.8 million shares during the quarter for $1.03 billion. Its comparable-sales measure covers U.S. stores open at least one year and includes qualifying online orders.
Full-year sales outlook raised
The company raised its full-year comparable-store-sales growth forecast to a range of 5.5% to 6.5%. It also raised its gross-margin forecast to 51.6% to 52.1% and its operating-margin forecast to 19.5% to 20.0%. O’Reilly said those updates incorporate the third-quarter tariff-refund benefit.
The retailer expects 225 to 235 net new stores across North America in 2026, after opening 173 through September. It operated 6,758 stores across the United States, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Canada at quarter-end.
JBizNews Desk | Springfield, Missouri
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