O’Reilly Automotive announced record revenues and earnings for its third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2015.
Sales for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2015, increased $203 million, or 11 percent, to $2.08 billion from $1.88 billion for the same period one year ago. Gross profit for the third quarter increased to $1.09 billion (or 52.4 percent of sales) from $968 million (or 51.6 percent of sales) for the same period one year ago, representing an increase of 13 percent.
Net income for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2015, increased $49 million, or 23 percent, to $266 million (or 12.8 percent of sales) from $217 million (or 11.6 percent of sales) for the same period one year ago. Diluted earnings per common share for the third quarter increased 28 percent to $2.64 on 101 million shares versus $2.06 on 105 million shares for the same period one year ago.
O’Reilly’s President and CEO, Greg Henslee, commented, “We are extremely proud to report another very successful quarter, highlighted by a 7.9 percent increase in comparable store sales and a record high operating margin of 20 percent. Our industry-leading comparable store sales results this quarter represent our eighth consecutive quarter of comparable store sales growth greater than 5 percent, with an especially robust increase of over 7 percent in each quarter of this year. This consistently strong performance is the direct result of our team members’ commitment to providing excellent customer service every day in all of our stores, and I would like to thank each of our over 72,000 team members for their hard work and dedication to our ongoing success.”
Henslee added, “Our relentless focus on profitable growth translated our very strong top-line performance into an all-time record-high operating margin of 20 percent, representing another milestone achievement for O’Reilly. This quarter also represents our 27th consecutive quarter of diluted earnings per share growth greater than 15 percent, with a 28 percent increase in third quarter diluted earnings per share to $2.64. Our third quarter earnings per share results included a benefit of approximately 11 cents as the result of the resolution of certain historical tax positions, which was greater than what we would normally expect to realize in the third quarter. While we are pleased to have favorably resolved these issues, this benefit is not representative of our expected tax rate moving forward. Excluding this 11-cent benefit, our third quarter diluted earnings per share increased 23 percent.”
Year-to-Date Financial Results
Sales for the first nine months of 2015 increased $566 million, or 10 percent, to $6.02 billion from $5.45 billion for the same period one year ago. Gross profit for the first nine months of 2015 increased to $3.14 billion (or 52.1 percent of sales) from $2.80 billion (or 51.3 percent of sales) for the same period one year ago, representing an increase of 12 percent.
Net income for the first nine months of 2015 increased $116 million, or 19 percent, to $713 million (or 11.8 percent of sales) from $597 million (or 10.9 percent of sales) for the same period one year ago. Diluted earnings per common share for the first nine months of 2015 increased 25 percent to $6.98 on 102 million shares versus $5.58 on 107 million shares for the same period one year ago.
Henslee added, “During the third quarter, we opened 58 net, new stores, which brings our year-to-date store expansion to 157 net, new stores across 34 states, and we are on target to reach our goal of 205 net, new store openings this year. Additionally, I am pleased to announce that in October, we expanded into our 44th state with the opening of two stores in Connecticut. We continue to be very pleased with the performance of our new store openings, staffed with great teams who provide excellent customer service, and we remain very confident in the long-term drivers for demand in our industry. Based on these factors, we are pleased to announce our plan to increase the number of our new store openings to 210 net, new stores in 2016. We are very proud of our long record of consistently strong and profitable growth, and we remain focused on continuing to provide unsurpassed levels of service to our customers into the future.”
Share Repurchase Program
During the third quarter, the company repurchased 1.1 million shares of its common stock, at an average price per share of $238.97, for a total investment of $274 million. During the first nine months of 2015, the company repurchased 3.8 million shares of its common stock, at an average price per share of $224.39, for a total investment of $849 million. Subsequent to the end of the third quarter and through the date of this release, the company repurchased an additional 0.1 million shares of its common stock, at an average price per share of $247.74, for a total investment of $30 million. The company has repurchased a total of 50.3 million shares of its common stock under its share repurchase program since the inception of the program in January of 2011 and through the date of this release, at an average price of $101.48, for a total aggregate investment of $5.10 billion. As of the date of this release, the company had approximately $400 million remaining under its current share repurchase authorization.
