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By Abhinav Parmar and Raechel Thankam Job
(Reuters) -Auto-parts distributor O'Reilly Automotive raised its annual profit forecast on Wednesday, as President Donald Trump's tariffs push cost-conscious consumers to choose replacement parts over new vehicles.
The company now expects its full-year profit to be in a range of $42.90 to $43.40 per share, from $42.60 to $43.10 per share previously. It also reiterated its 2025 revenue estimates, expecting to record between $17.4 billion to $17.7 billion.
Automakers and parts suppliers have been scrambling to find ways to tackle Trump's on-again, off-again tariffs, which are expected to raise car prices, prompting price-conscious consumers to continue maintaining their older vehicles, thus increasing demand for O'Reilly's DIY products.
Analysts consider O'Reilly to be among the frontrunners in this scenario because of its broad range of products.
The company, like many of its auto parts peers, is also believed to be well positioned to pass on any incremental costs to its customers.
Following the tit-for-tat tariffs triggered by Trump's levies on trade partners, the automotive industry has been facing bouts of uncertainty.
"The changing tariff landscape brings with it a high degree of uncertainty, and the fluid nature of the implementation of tariff adjustments makes it difficult for us to predict the impact to our business and our customers," CEO Brad Beckham said.
O'Reilly sources a significant portion of its products from China and Mexico, two of the countries hardest hit by tariffs, with levies on Chinese imports amounting to 145%.
The Springfield, Missouri-based company reported a profit of $9.35 per share in the first quarter ended March 31, compared with analysts' estimates of $9.86 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.
The company also reported sales of $4.14 billion for the quarter, below estimates of $4.17 billion.
(Reporting by Raechel Thankam Job and Abhinav Parmar in Bengaluru; Editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi)