Morgan Stanley Trims O’Reilly Auto (ORLY) Target Price to $108, Due To Rising Costs

Core Insights - O'Reilly Automotive Inc. is recognized as one of the best consumer discretionary stocks to buy currently, despite a recent target price reduction by Morgan Stanley due to rising cost pressures [1][8]. Financial Performance - In Q4 2025, O'Reilly reported a 9.8% year-over-year increase in net income, reaching $605.2 million, up from $551.1 million [2]. - Earnings per diluted share increased by 12.7% year-over-year to $0.71, compared to $0.63 [2]. - Sales grew by 7.8% year-over-year to $4.4 billion, with same-store sales contributing 5.6% to this growth [3]. Cost and Margin Analysis - Operating profit margins experienced an 80-basis point year-over-year decline, from 18.8% to 18.0%, primarily due to increased costs [4]. - The cost of sales rose from 51.3% to 51.8% of sales, while selling, general, and administrative expenses increased from 33.0% to 33.3% [4]. Future Guidance - Management anticipates 225 to 235 net store additions and expects same-store sales growth of 3.0% to 5.0% for 2026, projecting revenue growth of approximately 5.2% to 6.9% [5]. - Full-year revenue is expected to be between $18.7 billion and $19.0 billion, with targeted gross profit margins of 51.5% to 52.0% and operating profit margins of 19.2% to 19.7% [5].