Is O’Reilly Automotive Stock Underperforming the Dow Jones?

Is O’Reilly Automotive Stock Underperforming the Dow Jones?
Is O’Reilly Automotive Stock Underperforming the Dow Jones?

O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (ORLY), headquartered in Springfield, Missouri, is a leading retailer and supplier of automotive parts, tools, supplies, equipment and accessories. Valued at $80.2 billion by market capitalization, the company sells its products to DIY customers, professional mechanics and service technicians.

Companies worth $10 billion or more are typically described as “large-cap stocks,” and ORLY fits that description perfectly, as its market capitalization surpasses this mark, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the specialty retail industry. ORLY maintains an efficient distribution network. With more than 6,000 stores in the U.S. and Mexico, the O’Reilly brand is known for its quality and reliability, building a loyal customer base.

Despite its notable strength, ORLY fell 12.6% from its 52-week high of $108.72, reached on September 30, 2025. Over the past three months, ORLY stock fell 4.8%, lagging the Dow Jones Industrials Average ($DOWI)’s 3% gains over the same time period.

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ORLY stock is up 4.2% year-to-date, outperforming DOWI’s year-to-date gains of 1.8%. However, over the long term, the stock is up 3.8% over the past 52 weeks, lagging the DOWI’s 11.6% return over the past year.

To confirm the bullish trend, ORLY has been trading above its 50-day moving average since the end of January, experiencing some fluctuations. However, the stock has been trading below its 200-day moving average since early December 2025, with some fluctuations.

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ORLY’s poor performance is due to rising self-insurance and healthcare costs, and cautious consumer behavior putting pressure on the DIY segment, with stable pricing but persistent cost inflation leading to higher SG&A expenses and impacting profitability.

On February 4, ORLY reported its fourth quarter results and its shares closed down more than 4% in the following trading session. Its EPS of $0.71 missed Wall Street’s expectations of $0.72. The company’s revenue was $4.41 billion, beating Wall Street forecasts of $4.40 billion. ORLY expects full-year earnings per share to be between $3.10 and $3.20 and revenue to be between $18.7 billion and $19 billion.

ORLY’s rival AutoZone, Inc. (AZO) The stock has lagged stocks, with a year-to-date gain of 14.5% and returns of 11.2% over the past 52 weeks.

Wall Street analysts are optimistic about ORLY’s prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” from the 28 analysts covering it, and the average price target of $108.04 suggests a potential upside of 13.7% from current price levels.

On the date of publication, Neha Panjwani had no (directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article are for informational purposes only. This article was originally published on Barchart.com

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