O'Reilly Automotive (ORLY) 10-Q8 Nov 242024 Q3 Quarterly reportFinancial data

Company Profile

Document and Entity Information

Document and Entity Information - shares	9 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information - shares	Sep. 30, 2024	Nov. 04, 2024
Document and Entity Information
Document type	10-Q
Document quarterly report	true
Document transition report	false
Amendment flag	false
Current fiscal year end date	--12-31
Document period end date	Sep. 30, 2024
Document fiscal year focus	2024
Document fiscal period focus	Q3
Entity registrant name	O Reilly Automotive Inc
Entity central index key	0000898173
Entity incorporation, state	MO
Entity file number	000-21318
Entity tax identification number	27-4358837
Entity address, address	233 South Patterson Avenue
Entity address, city	Springfield
Entity address, postal zip code	65802
Entity address, state	MO
City area code	417
Local phone number	862-6708
Title of 12(b) security	Common Stock,
Trading symbol	ORLY
Security exchange name	NASDAQ
Entity current reporting status	Yes
Entity filer category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity small business	false
Entity emerging growth company	false
Entity interactive data current	Yes
Entity shell company	false
Entity common stock, shares outstanding		57,730,693

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023	[1]
Assets
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 115,613	$ 279,132
Accounts receivable, net	401,950	375,049
Amounts receivable from suppliers	154,300	140,443
Inventory	4,913,237	4,658,367
Other current assets	113,187	105,311
Total current assets	5,698,287	5,558,302
Property and equipment, at cost	8,969,137	8,312,367
Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization	3,532,755	3,275,387
Net property and equipment	5,436,382	5,036,980
Operating lease, right-of-use assets	2,269,929	2,200,554
Goodwill	997,226	897,696
Other assets, net	175,698	179,463
Total assets	14,577,522	13,872,995
Liabilities and shareholders' deficit
Accounts payable	6,359,619	6,091,700
Self-insurance reserves	123,505	128,548
Accrued payroll	141,361	138,122
Accrued benefits and withholdings	201,351	174,650
Income taxes payable	206,776	7,860
Current portion of operating lease liabilities	408,571	389,536
Other current liabilities	743,982	730,937
Total current liabilities	8,185,165	7,661,353
Long-term debt	5,359,810	5,570,125
Operating lease liabilities, less current portion	1,938,162	1,881,344
Deferred income taxes	325,869	295,471
Other liabilities	207,580	203,980
Shareholders' (equity) deficit:
Common stock, $0.01 par value: Authorized shares - 245,000,000 Issued and outstanding shares - 57,838,920 as of September 30, 2024, and 59,072,792 as of December 31, 2023	578	591
Additional paid-in capital	1,449,447	1,352,275
Retained deficit	(2,875,955)	(3,131,532)
Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income	(13,134)	39,388
Total shareholders' deficit	(1,439,064)	(1,739,278)
Total liabilities and shareholders' deficit	$ 14,577,522	$ 13,872,995

[1]The balance sheet at December 31, 2023, has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements at that date but does not include all of the information and footnotes required by United States generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANC_2

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) - $ / shares	Sep. 30, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
Common stock, par value	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares authorized	245,000,000	245,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	57,838,920	59,072,792
Common stock, shares outstanding	57,838,920	59,072,792

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMEN

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income
Sales	$ 4,364,437	$ 4,203,380	$ 12,612,878	$ 11,980,235
Cost of goods sold, including warehouse and distribution expenses	2,113,212	2,042,917	6,159,421	5,842,861
Gross profit	2,251,225	2,160,463	6,453,457	6,137,374
Selling, general and administrative expenses	1,354,497	1,263,241	3,940,950	3,669,734
Operating income	896,728	897,222	2,512,507	2,467,640
Other income (expense):
Interest expense	(55,166)	(51,361)	(167,145)	(145,520)
Interest income	2,055	1,292	5,239	2,920
Other, net	4,304	(486)	9,266	8,179
Total other expense	(48,807)	(50,555)	(152,640)	(134,421)
Income before income taxes	847,921	846,667	2,359,867	2,333,219
Provision for income taxes	182,457	196,840	524,317	539,142
Net income	$ 665,464	$ 649,827	$ 1,835,550	$ 1,794,077
Earnings per share-basic:
Earnings per share	$ 11.47	$ 10.82	$ 31.34	$ 29.46
Weighted-average common shares outstanding - basic	57,998	60,082	58,563	60,905
Earnings per share-assuming dilution:
Earnings per share	$ 11.41	$ 10.72	$ 31.14	$ 29.20
Weighted-average common shares outstanding - assuming dilution	58,335	60,590	58,942	61,445

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEM_2

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income
Net Income (Loss)	$ 665,464	$ 649,827	$ 1,835,550	$ 1,794,077
Other comprehensive income (loss):
Foreign currency translation adjustments	(22,026)	(5,782)	(52,522)	27,293
Total other comprehensive income (loss)	(22,026)	(5,782)	(52,522)	27,293
Comprehensive income	$ 643,438	$ 644,045	$ 1,783,028	$ 1,821,370

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEM_3

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY (DEFICIT) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Common stock [Member]	Additional paid-in capital [Member]	Retained earnings (deficit) [Member]	Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) [Member]	Total
Balance at beginning of period at Dec. 31, 2022	$ 624	$ 1,311,488	$ (2,375,860)	$ 2,996	$ (1,060,752)
Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2022	62,353,000
Net Income (Loss)			1,794,077		1,794,077
Other comprehensive income (loss)				27,293	27,293
Issuance of common stock under employee benefit plans, net of forfeitures and shares withheld to cover taxes		16,649			16,649
Issuance of common stock under employee benefit plans, net of forfeitures and shares withheld to cover taxes, shares	22,000
Net issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options	$ 2	56,483			56,485
Net issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options, shares	207,000
Share-based compensation		20,555			20,555
Share repurchases, including fees	$ (30)	(64,012)	(2,526,938)		$ (2,590,980)
Share repurchases, including fees, shares	(2,961,000)				(2,961,000)
Excise tax on net share repurchases			(23,796)		$ (23,796)
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2023	$ 596	1,341,163	(3,132,517)	30,289	(1,760,469)
Balance (in shares) at Sep. 30, 2023	59,621,000
Balance at beginning of period at Jun. 30, 2023	$ 604	1,330,270	(2,994,418)	36,071	(1,627,473)
Balance (in shares) at Jun. 30, 2023	60,402,000
Net Income (Loss)			649,827		649,827
Other comprehensive income (loss)				(5,782)	(5,782)
Issuance of common stock under employee benefit plans, net of forfeitures and shares withheld to cover taxes		5,239			5,239
Issuance of common stock under employee benefit plans, net of forfeitures and shares withheld to cover taxes, shares	7,000
Net issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options	$ 1	17,685			17,686
Net issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options, shares	64,000
Share-based compensation		6,900			6,900
Share repurchases, including fees	$ (9)	(18,931)	(780,589)		$ (799,529)
Share repurchases, including fees, shares	(852,000)				(852,000)
Excise tax on net share repurchases			(7,337)		$ (7,337)
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2023	$ 596	1,341,163	(3,132,517)	30,289	(1,760,469)
Balance (in shares) at Sep. 30, 2023	59,621,000
Balance at beginning of period at Dec. 31, 2023	$ 591	1,352,275	(3,131,532)	39,388	$ (1,739,278)	[1]
Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2023	59,073,000				59,072,792
Net Income (Loss)			1,835,550		$ 1,835,550
Other comprehensive income (loss)				(52,522)	(52,522)
Issuance of common stock under employee benefit plans, net of forfeitures and shares withheld to cover taxes		18,213			18,213
Issuance of common stock under employee benefit plans, net of forfeitures and shares withheld to cover taxes, shares	20,000
Net issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options	$ 3	96,043			96,046
Net issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options, shares	291,000
Share-based compensation		20,138			20,138
Share repurchases, including fees	$ (16)	(37,222)	(1,567,271)		$ (1,604,509)
Share repurchases, including fees, shares	(1,545,000)				(1,545,000)
Excise tax on net share repurchases			(12,702)		$ (12,702)
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2024	$ 578	1,449,447	(2,875,955)	(13,134)	$ (1,439,064)
Balance (in shares) at Sep. 30, 2024	57,839,000				57,838,920
Balance at beginning of period at Jun. 30, 2024	$ 582	1,415,799	(3,008,665)	8,892	$ (1,583,392)
Balance (in shares) at Jun. 30, 2024	58,239,000
Net Income (Loss)			665,464		665,464
Other comprehensive income (loss)				(22,026)	(22,026)
Issuance of common stock under employee benefit plans, net of forfeitures and shares withheld to cover taxes		5,809			5,809
Issuance of common stock under employee benefit plans, net of forfeitures and shares withheld to cover taxes, shares	6,000
Net issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options	$ 1	33,225			33,226
Net issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options, shares	92,000
Share-based compensation		6,865			6,865
Share repurchases, including fees	$ (5)	(12,251)	(528,462)		$ (540,718)
Share repurchases, including fees, shares	(498,000)				(498,000)
Excise tax on net share repurchases			4,292		$ 4,292
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2024	$ 578	$ 1,449,447	$ (2,875,955)	$ (13,134)	$ (1,439,064)
Balance (in shares) at Sep. 30, 2024	57,839,000				57,838,920

[1]The balance sheet at December 31, 2023, has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements at that date but does not include all of the information and footnotes required by United States generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEM_4

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Operating activities:
Net Income (Loss)	$ 1,835,550	$ 1,794,077
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and intangibles	339,324	296,583
Amortization of debt discount and issuance costs	4,870	3,597
Deferred income taxes	8,536	35,982
Share-based compensation programs	21,600	21,948
Other	5,928	3,574
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable	(9,175)	(58,658)
Inventory	(212,491)	(263,896)
Accounts payable	252,454	315,910
Income taxes payable	198,780	353,366
Other	(20,287)	15,172
Net cash provided by operating activities	2,425,089	2,517,655
Investing activities:
Purchases of property and equipment	(732,916)	(753,958)
Proceeds from sale of property and equipment	10,268	10,461
Investment in tax credit equity investments	0	(4,150)
Other	(160,960)	(2,126)
Net cash used in investing activities	(883,608)	(749,773)
Financing activities:
Proceeds from borrowings on revolving credit facility	30,000	3,227,000
Payments on revolving credit facility	(30,000)	(3,227,000)
Net (payments) proceeds of commercial paper	(706,850)	1,025,075
Proceeds from the issuance of long-term debt	498,910	0
Principal payments on long-term debt	0	(300,000)
Payment of debt issuance costs	(3,900)	(39)
Repurchases of common stock	(1,604,509)	(2,590,980)
Net proceeds from issuance of common stock	112,825	71,604
Other	(569)	(354)
Net cash used in financing activities	(1,704,093)	(1,794,694)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash	(907)	893
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents	(163,519)	(25,919)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period	279,132	108,583
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period	115,613	82,664
Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information:
Income taxes paid	419,331	147,128
Interest paid, net of capitalized interest	$ 139,228	$ 127,085

BASIS OF PRESENTATION

BASIS OF PRESENTATION	9 Months Ended
BASIS OF PRESENTATION	Sep. 30, 2024
Basis of Presentation
Basis of presentation	NOTE 1 – BASIS OF PRESENTATION The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements of O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. and its subsidiaries (the “Company” or “O’Reilly”) have been prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”) for interim financial information and the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. Operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ended December 31, 2024. For further information, refer to the consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto included in the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. Principles of consolidation: The condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All inter-company balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Business Combination

Business Combination	9 Months Ended
Business Combination	Sep. 30, 2024
Business Combination
Business combination	NOTE 2 – BUSINESS COMBINATION On January 22, 2024, the Company completed the previously announced strategic acquisition of Groupe Del Vasto (“Vast Auto”), an auto parts supplier headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, pursuant to a stock purchase agreement whereby 100% of all outstanding shares of Vast Auto were acquired, with all consideration paid in cash at closing. The acquisition of Vast Auto represents O’Reilly’s entrance into the Canadian automotive aftermarket. At the time of the acquisition, Vast Auto operated two distribution centers and six satellite warehouses that support a network of 23 company-owned stores and thousands of independent jobber and professional customers across Eastern Canada. The results of Vast Auto’s operations have been included in the Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements beginning from the date of acquisition. Pro forma results of operations related to the acquisition of Vast Auto are not presented as Vast Auto’s results are not material to the Company’s results of operations. The purchase price allocation process, which is still ongoing, consists of collecting data and information to enable the Company to value the assets acquired and liabilities assumed as a result of the business combination. The Company has substantially completed purchase price allocations related to working capital, including inventory, accounts receivable, accounts payable, and property, plant, and equipment. Potential identifiable intangible assets that continue to be evaluated include, but are not limited to, trade names and trademarks, non-compete agreements, and customer relationships. In addition, other assets, including internal use software, and other assumed liabilities may be identified, valued, and recorded. The Company has engaged a third-party valuation specialist to assist with the valuation of the intangible assets. This process is ongoing and the Company remains in the initial measurement period. The preliminary purchase price allocation remains provisional and will change as additional information is obtained and valuation work is completed during the initial measurement period. The Company’s preliminary assessment resulted in the initial recognition of $109.8 million of goodwill and intangible assets, which has been increased by $0.4 million during the initial measurement period, including impacts from the recognition of applicable deferred taxes related to the acquisition, which is included in “Goodwill” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of September 30, 2024. Goodwill generated from this acquisition is not amortizable for tax purposes.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES	9 Months Ended
VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES	Sep. 30, 2024
Variable Interest Entities
Variable interest entities	NOTE 3 – VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES The Company has invested in certain tax credit funds that promote renewable energy. These investments generate a return primarily through the realization of federal tax credits and other tax benefits. The Company accounts for the tax attributes of its renewable energy investments using the deferral method. Under this method, realized investment tax credits and other tax benefits are recognized as a reduction of the renewable energy tax credits. The Company has determined its investment in these tax credit funds were investments in variable interest entities (“VIEs”). The Company analyzes any investments in VIEs at inception and again if certain triggering events are identified to determine if it is the primary beneficiary. The Company considers a variety of factors in identifying the entity that holds the power to direct matters that most significantly impact the VIEs’ economic performance including, but not limited to, the ability to direct financing, leasing, construction, and other operating decisions and activities. As of September 30, 2024, the Company had invested in six unconsolidated tax credit fund entities that were considered to be VIEs and concluded it was not the primary beneficiary of any of the entities, as it did not have the power to control the activities that most significantly impact the entities, and has therefore accounted for these investments using the equity method. The Company’s maximum exposure to losses associated with these VIEs is generally limited to its net investment, which was $28.4 million as of September 30, 2024, and was included in “Other assets, net” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS	9 Months Ended
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS	Sep. 30, 2024
Fair Value Measurements
Fair value measurements	NOTE 4 – FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS The Company uses the fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used to measure the fair value of certain of its financial instruments. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurement) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurement). The Company uses the income and market approaches to determine the fair value of its assets and liabilities. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are set forth below: ● Level 1 – Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the reporting entity can access at the measurement date. ● Level 2 – Inputs other than quoted prices in active markets included within Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. ● Level 3 – Unobservable inputs for the asset or liability. Financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis: The Company invests in various marketable securities with the intention of selling these securities to fulfill its future unsecured obligations under the Company’s nonqualified deferred compensation plan. See Note 12 for further information concerning the Company’s benefit plans. The Company’s marketable securities were accounted for as trading securities and the carrying amount of its marketable securities were included in “Other assets, net” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023. The Company recorded an increase in fair value related to its marketable securities in the amount of $3.3 million and a decrease in fair value related to its marketable securities in the amount of $1.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, which were included in “Other income (expense)” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. The Company recorded an increase in fair value related to its marketable securities in the amount of $7.4 million and $3.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, which were included in “Other income (expense)” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. The tables below identify the estimated fair value of the Company’s marketable securities, determined by reference to quoted market prices (Level 1), as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023 (in thousands): September 30, 2024 Quoted Priced in Active Markets Significant Other Significant for Identical Instruments Observable Inputs Unobservable Inputs (Level 1) (Level 2) (Level 3) Total Marketable securities $ 65,677 $ — $ — $ 65,677 December 31, 2023 Quoted Prices in Active Markets Significant Other Significant for Identical Instruments Observable Inputs Unobservable Inputs (Level 1) (Level 2) (Level 3) Total Marketable securities $ 59,508 $ — $ — $ 59,508 Non-financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis: Certain long-lived non-financial assets and liabilities may be required to be measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis in certain circumstances, including when there is evidence of impairment. These non-financial assets and liabilities may include assets acquired in a business combination or property and equipment that are determined to be impaired. As of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, the Company did not have any non-financial assets or liabilities that had been measured at fair value subsequent to initial recognition. Fair value of financial instruments: The carrying amounts of the Company’s senior notes, unsecured revolving credit facility borrowings, and commercial paper program borrowings are included in “Long-term debt” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023. The table below identifies the estimated fair value of the Company’s senior notes, using the market approach. The fair value as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, was determined by reference to quoted market prices of the same or similar instruments (Level 2) (in thousands): September 30, 2024 December 31, 2023 Carrying Amount Estimated Fair Value Carrying Amount Estimated Fair Value Senior Notes $ 5,319,844 $ 5,268,906 $ 4,820,543 $ 4,687,065 The carrying amount of the Company’s unsecured revolving credit facility approximates fair value (Level 2), as borrowings under the facility bear variable interest at current market rates. The carrying amount of the Company’s commercial paper program approximates fair value (Level 2), as borrowings under the program bear interest at market rates prevailing at the time of issuance. See Note 7 for further information concerning the Company’s senior notes, unsecured revolving credit facility, and commercial paper program. The accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets include other financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, amounts receivable from suppliers, and accounts payable. Due to the short-term nature of these financial instruments, the Company believes that the carrying values of these instruments approximate their fair values.

LEASES

LEASES	9 Months Ended
LEASES	Sep. 30, 2024
Leases
Leases	NOTE 5 – LEASES The Company leases certain office space, retail stores, distribution centers, and equipment under long-term, non-cancelable operating leases. The following table summarizes Total lease cost for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, which were primarily included in “Selling, general and administrative expenses” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (in thousands): For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Operating lease cost $ 107,146 $ 100,559 $ 315,741 $ 296,624 Short-term operating lease cost 1,965 1,708 6,375 7,213 Variable operating lease cost 29,386 25,696 84,565 75,257 Sublease income (1,315) (1,143) (3,681) (3,632) Total lease cost $ 137,182 $ 126,820 $ 403,000 $ 375,462 The following table summarizes other lease-related information for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023: For the Nine Months Ended September 30, 2024 2023 Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities: Operating cash flows from operating leases $ 309,572 $ 291,033 Right-of-use assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities 291,486 324,893

SUPPLIER FINANCE PROGRAMS

SUPPLIER FINANCE PROGRAMS	9 Months Ended
SUPPLIER FINANCE PROGRAMS	Sep. 30, 2024
Supplier Finance Programs
Supplier Finance Programs	NOTE 6 – SUPPLIER FINANCE PROGRAM The Company has established and maintains supplier finance programs with certain third-party financial institutions, which allow participating merchandise suppliers to voluntarily elect to assign the Company’s payment obligations due to these merchandise suppliers to one of the designated third-party institutions. Under these supplier finance programs, the Company has agreed to pay the third-party financial institutions the stated amount of confirmed merchandise supplier invoices on the original maturity dates of the invoices, which are generally for a term of one year. The Company does not have any assets pledged as security or other forms of guarantees for the committed payment to the third-party financial institutions. As of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, the Company had obligations outstanding under these programs for invoices that were confirmed as valid to the third-party financial institutions in the amounts of $4.5 billion and $4.4 billion, respectively, which were included as a component of “Accounts payable” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.

FINANCING

FINANCING	9 Months Ended
FINANCING	Sep. 30, 2024
Financing
Financing	NOTE 7 – FINANCING The following table identifies the amounts included in “Long-term debt” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023 (in thousands): September 30, 2024 December 31, 2023 Commercial paper program, weighted-average variable interest rate of 4.980% as of September 30, 2024 and 5.640% as of December 31, 2023 40,000 750,900 3.550% Senior Notes due 2026, effective interest rate of 3.570% 500,000 500,000 5.750% Senior Notes due 2026, effective interest rate of 5.767% 750,000 750,000 3.600% Senior Notes due 2027, effective interest rate of 3.619% 750,000 750,000 4.350% Senior Notes due 2028, effective interest rate of 4.383% 500,000 500,000 3.900% Senior Notes due 2029, effective interest rate of 3.901% 500,000 500,000 4.200% Senior Notes due 2030, effective interest rate of 4.205% 500,000 500,000 1.750% Senior Notes due 2031, effective interest rate of 1.798% 500,000 500,000 4.700% Senior Notes due 2032, effective interest rate of 4.740% 850,000 850,000 5.000% Senior Notes due 2034, effective interest rate of 5.028% 500,000 — Total principal amount of debt 5,390,000 5,600,900 Less: Unamortized discount and debt issuance costs 30,190 30,775 Total long-term debt $ 5,359,810 $ 5,570,125 Unsecured revolving credit facility: The Company is party to a credit agreement dated June 15, 2021, as amended as of March 6, 2023 (the “Credit Agreement”). The Credit Agreement provides for a five-year $1.8 billion unsecured revolving credit facility (the “Revolving Credit Facility”) arranged by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., which is scheduled to mature in June of 2026. The Credit Agreement includes a $200 million sub-limit for the issuance of letters of credit and a $75 million sub-limit for swing line borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility. As described in the Credit Agreement governing the Revolving Credit Facility, the Company may, from time to time, subject to certain conditions, increase the aggregate commitments under the Revolving Credit Facility by up to $900 million, provided that the aggregate amount of the commitments does not exceed $2.7 billion at any time. As of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, the Company had outstanding letters of credit, primarily to support obligations related to workers’ compensation, general liability, and other insurance policies, under the Credit Agreement each in the amount of $5.4 million, reducing the aggregate availability under the Credit Agreement by those amounts. Substantially all of these outstanding letters of credit have a one-year term from the date of issuance. As of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, the Company had no outstanding borrowings under its Revolving Credit Facility. Borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility (other than swing line loans) bear interest, at the Company’s option, at either an Alternate Base Rate or an Adjusted Term SOFR Rate (both as defined in the Credit Agreement) plus an applicable margin. Swing line loans made under the Revolving Credit Facility bear interest at an Alternate Base Rate plus the applicable margin for Alternate Base Rate loans. In addition, the Company pays a facility fee on the aggregate amount of the commitments under the Credit Agreement in an amount equal to a percentage of such commitments. The interest rate margins and facility fee are based upon the better of the ratings assigned to the Company’s debt by Moody’s Investor Service, Inc. and Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services, subject to limited exceptions. As of September 30, 2024, based upon the Company’s current credit ratings, its margin for Alternate Base Rate loans was 0.000%, its margin for Term Benchmark Revolving Loans was 0.900%, and its facility fee was 0.100%. The Credit Agreement contains certain covenants, including limitations on subsidiary indebtedness, a minimum consolidated fixed charge coverage ratio of 2.50:1.00 and a maximum consolidated leverage ratio of 3.50:1.00. The consolidated fixed charge coverage ratio includes a calculation of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, rent, and non-cash share-based compensation expense to fixed charges. Fixed charges include interest expense, capitalized interest, and rent expense. The consolidated leverage ratio includes a calculation of adjusted debt to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, rent, and non-cash share-based compensation expense. Adjusted debt includes outstanding debt, outstanding stand-by letters of credit, and similar instruments, five-times rent expense and excludes any premium or discount recorded in conjunction with the issuance of long-term debt. In the event that the Company should default on any covenant (subject to customary grace periods, cure rights, and materiality thresholds) contained in the Credit Agreement, certain actions may be taken, including, but not limited to, possible termination of commitments, immediate payment of outstanding principal amounts plus accrued interest and other amounts payable under the Credit Agreement, and litigation from lenders. As of September 30, 2024, the Company remained in compliance with all covenants under the Credit Agreement. In addition to the letters of credit issued under the Credit Agreement described above, as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, the Company had additional outstanding letters of credit, primarily to support obligations under workers’ compensation, general liability, and other insurance policies, in the amount of $121.9 million and $106.8 million, respectively. Substantially all of these letters of credit have a one-year term from the date of issuance and were not issued under the Company’s Credit Agreement or another committed facility. Commercial paper program: On August 9, 2023, the Company established a commercial paper program (the “Program”) pursuant to which it may issue short-term, unsecured commercial paper notes (the “Notes”) under the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Amounts available under the Program may be borrowed, repaid, and re-borrowed from time to time, with the aggregate face or principal amount of the Notes outstanding under the Program at any time not to exceed $1.8 billion. The Notes will have maturities of up to 397 days from the date of issue. The Notes rank at least pari passu with all of the Company’s other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness. The Company plans to use its Revolving Credit Facility as a liquidity backstop for the repayment of Notes outstanding under the Program. The Notes issued under the Program were included in “Long-term debt” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet as of September 30, 2024, as the Company has the ability and intent to refinance these Notes on a long-term basis. Senior notes: On August 19, 2024, the Company issued $500 million aggregate principal amount of unsecured 5.000% Senior Notes due 2034 (“5.000% Senior Notes due 2034”) at a price to the public of 99.782% of their face value with U.S. Bank Trust Company, National Association (“U.S. Bank”) as trustee. Interest on the 5.000% Senior Notes due 2034 is payable on August 19 and February 19 of each year, beginning on February 19, 2025, and is computed on the basis of a 360-day year. As of September 30, 2024, the Company has issued and outstanding a cumulative $5.4 billion aggregate principal amount of unsecured senior notes, which are due between 2026 and 2034, with UMB Bank, N.A. and U.S. Bank Trust Company, National Association as trustees. Interest on the senior notes, ranging from 1.750% to 5.750%, is payable semi-annually and is computed on the basis of a 360-day year. None of the Company’s subsidiaries is a guarantor under the senior notes. Each of the senior notes is subject to certain customary covenants, with which the Company complied as of September 30, 2024.

WARRANTIES

WARRANTIES	9 Months Ended
WARRANTIES	Sep. 30, 2024
Warranties
Warranties	NOTE 8 – WARRANTIES The Company provides warranties on certain merchandise it sells with warranty periods ranging from 30 days to limited lifetime warranties. The risk of loss arising from warranty claims is typically the obligation of the Company’s suppliers. Certain suppliers provide upfront allowances to the Company in lieu of accepting the obligation for warranty claims. For this merchandise, when sold, the Company bears the risk of loss associated with the cost of warranty claims. Differences between supplier allowances received by the Company, in lieu of warranty obligations and estimated warranty expense, are recorded as an adjustment to cost of sales. Estimated warranty costs, which are recorded as obligations at the time of sale, are based on the historical failure rate of each individual product line. The Company’s historical experience has been that failure rates are relatively consistent over time and that the ultimate cost of warranty claims to the Company has been driven by volume of units sold as opposed to fluctuations in failure rates or the variation of the cost of individual claims. The Company’s product warranty liabilities are included in “Other current liabilities” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023; the following table identifies the changes in the Company’s aggregate product warranty liabilities for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 (in thousands): Warranty liabilities, balance at December 31, 2023 $ 117,895 Warranty claims (151,873) Warranty accruals 166,195 Foreign currency translation (79) Warranty liabilities, balance at September 30, 2024 $ 132,138

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM	9 Months Ended
SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM	Sep. 30, 2024
Share Repurchase Program
Share repurchase program	NOTE 9 – SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM In January of 2011, the Company’s Board of Directors approved a share repurchase program. Under the program, the Company may, from time to time, repurchase shares of its common stock, solely through open market purchases effected through a broker dealer at prevailing market prices, based on a variety of factors such as price, corporate trading policy requirements, and overall market conditions. The Company’s Board of Directors may increase or otherwise modify, renew, suspend, or terminate the share repurchase program at any time, without prior notice. As announced on May 23, 2023, and November 16, 2023, the Company’s Board of Directors each time approved a resolution to increase the authorization amount under the share repurchase program by an additional $2.0 billion, resulting in a cumulative authorization amount of $25.8 billion. The additional authorizations are effective for three years, beginning on their respective announcement date. The following table identifies shares of the Company’s common stock that have been repurchased as part of the Company’s publicly announced share repurchase program for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 (in thousands, except per share data): For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Shares repurchased 498 852 1,545 2,961 Average price per share $ 1,084.28 $ 938.11 $ 1,038.32 $ 874.99 Total investment $ 540,713 $ 799,520 $ 1,604,494 $ 2,590,950 As of September 30, 2024, the Company had $967.7 million remaining under its share repurchase authorization. Excise tax on shares repurchased, assessed at one percent of the fair market value of shares repurchased, was $16.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024. Subsequent to the end of the third quarter and through November 8, 2024, the Company repurchased 0.2 million additional shares of its common stock under its share repurchase program, at an average price of $1,174.84, for a total investment of $192.4 million. The Company has repurchased a total of 95.8 million shares of its common stock under its share repurchase program since the inception of the program in January of 2011 and through November 8, 2024, at an average price of $260.71, for a total aggregate investment of $25.0 billion.

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)	9 Months Ended
ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)	Sep. 30, 2024
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)	NOTE 10 – ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) includes adjustments for foreign currency translations. The tables below summarize activity for changes in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 (in thousands): Foreign Total Accumulated Other Currency (1) Comprehensive Loss Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at June 30, 2024 $ 8,892 $ 8,892 Change in accumulated other comprehensive loss (22,026) (22,026) Accumulated other comprehensive loss, balance at September 30, 2024 $ (13,134) $ (13,134) Foreign Total Accumulated Other Currency (1) Comprehensive Loss Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at December 31, 2023 $ 39,388 $ 39,388 Change in accumulated other comprehensive loss (52,522) (52,522) Accumulated other comprehensive loss, balance at September 30, 2024 $ (13,134) $ (13,134) Foreign Total Accumulated Other Currency (1) Comprehensive Income Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at June 30, 2023 $ 36,071 $ 36,071 Change in accumulated other comprehensive loss (5,782) (5,782) Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at September 30, 2023 $ 30,289 $ 30,289 Foreign Total Accumulated Other Currency (1) Comprehensive Income Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at December 31, 2022 $ 2,996 $ 2,996 Change in accumulated other comprehensive income 27,293 27,293 Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at September 30, 2023 $ 30,289 $ 30,289 (1) Foreign currency translation is not shown net of additional U.S. tax, as other basis differences of non-U.S. subsidiaries are intended to be permanently reinvested.

REVENUE

REVENUE	9 Months Ended
REVENUE	Sep. 30, 2024
Revenue
Revenue	NOTE 11 – REVENUE The table below identifies the Company’s revenues disaggregated by major customer type for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 (in thousands): For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Sales to do-it-yourself customers $ 2,215,640 $ 2,206,511 $ 6,366,670 $ 6,254,980 Sales to professional service provider customers 2,032,376 1,914,884 5,901,820 5,480,212 Other sales, sales adjustments, and sales from the acquired Vast Auto stores 116,421 81,985 344,388 245,043 Total sales $ 4,364,437 $ 4,203,380 $ 12,612,878 $ 11,980,235 See Note 8 for information concerning the expected costs associated with the Company’s assurance warranty obligations. See Note 2 for information concerning the recent acquisition of Vast Auto.

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BE

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS	9 Months Ended
SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS	Sep. 30, 2024
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Share-based compensation and benefit plans	NOTE 12 – SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS The Company recognizes share-based compensation expense based on the fair value of the grants, awards, or shares at the time of the grant, award, or issuance. Share-based compensation includes stock option awards, restricted stock awards, and stock appreciation rights issued under the Company’s incentive plans and stock issued through the Company’s employee stock purchase plan. Stock options: The Company’s incentive plans provide for the granting of stock options for the purchase of common stock of the Company to certain key employees of the Company. Employee stock options are granted at an exercise price that is equal to the closing market price of the Company’s common stock on the date of the grant. Employee stock options granted under the plans expire after 10 years and typically vest 25% per year, over four years. The Company records compensation expense for the grant date fair value of the option awards evenly over the vesting period or minimum required service period. The table below identifies stock option activity under these plans during the nine months ended September 30, 2024 (in thousands, except per share data): Shares Weighted- Average (in thousands) Exercise Price Outstanding at December 31, 2023 884 $ 428.50 Granted 70 1,061.73 Exercised (291) 329.59 Forfeited or expired (9) 676.68 Outstanding at September 30, 2024 654 $ 537.18 Exercisable at September 30, 2024 443 $ 393.93 The fair value of each stock option award is estimated on the date of the grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The Black-Scholes model requires the use of assumptions, including the risk-free rate, expected life, expected volatility, and expected dividend yield. ● Risk-free interest rate – The United States Treasury rates in effect at the time the options are granted for the options’ expected life. ● Expected life – Represents the period of time that options granted are expected to be outstanding. The Company uses historical experience to estimate the expected life of options granted. ● Expected volatility – Measure of the amount, by which the Company’s stock price is expected to fluctuate, based on a historical trend. ● Expected dividend yield – The Company has not paid, nor does it have plans in the foreseeable future to pay, any dividends. The table below identifies the weighted-average assumptions used for grants awarded during the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023: September 30, 2024 2023 Risk free interest rate 4.18 % 3.92 % Expected life 6.4 Years 6.3 Years Expected volatility 28.2 % 29.0 % Expected dividend yield — % — % The following table summarizes activity related to stock options awarded by the Company for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 (in thousands, except per share data): For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Compensation expense for stock options awarded $ 5,838 $ 5,977 $ 17,175 $ 17,892 Income tax benefit from compensation expense related to stock options 1,480 1,476 4,355 4,417 The weighted-average grant-date fair value of options granted during the nine months ended September 30, 2024, was $403.77, compared to $321.36 for the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The remaining unrecognized compensation expense related to unvested stock option awards at September 30, 2024, was $48.7 million, and the weighted-average period of time over which this cost will be recognized is 2.8 years. Other share-based compensation plans: The Company sponsors other share-based compensation plans: an employee stock purchase plan and incentive plans that provide for the awarding of shares of restricted stock to certain key employees and directors. The Company’s employee stock purchase plan (the “ESPP”) permits eligible employees to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock at 85% of the fair market value. The fair value of shares issued under the ESPP is based on the average of the high and low market prices of the Company’s common stock during the offering periods, and compensation expense is recognized based on the discount between the fair value and the employee purchase price for the shares sold to employees. Restricted stock awarded under the incentive plans to certain key employees and directors vests after one-year or evenly over a three-year period and is held in escrow until such vesting has occurred. The fair value of shares awarded under the incentive plans is based on the closing market price of the Company’s common stock on the date of the award, and compensation expense is recorded evenly over the vesting period or the minimum required service period. The table below summarizes activity related to the Company’s other share-based compensation plans for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 (in thousands): For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Compensation expense for shares issued under the ESPP $ 1,027 $ 923 $ 2,963 $ 2,663 Income tax benefit from compensation expense related to shares issued under the ESPP 260 228 751 657 Compensation expense for restricted shares awarded 506 477 1,462 1,393 Income tax benefit from compensation expense related to restricted awards $ 128 $ 118 $ 371 $ 344 Profit sharing and savings plan: The Company sponsors a contributory profit sharing and savings plan (the “401(k) Plan”) that covers substantially all employees who are at least 21 years of age. The Company makes matching contributions equal to 100% of the first 2% of each employee’s wages that are contributed and 25% of the next 4% of each employee’s wages that are contributed. The Company may also make additional discretionary profit sharing contributions to the 401(k) Plan on an annual basis as determined by the Board of Directors. The Company did not make any discretionary contributions to the 401(k) Plan during the nine months ended September 30, 2024 or 2023. The Company expensed matching contributions under the 401(k) Plan in the amount of $14.0 million and $13.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, which were primarily included in “Selling, general and administrative expenses” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. The Company expensed matching contributions under the 401(k) Plan in the amount of $40.6 million and $35.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, which were primarily included in “Selling, general and administrative expenses” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. Nonqualified deferred compensation plan: The Company sponsors a nonqualified deferred compensation plan (the “Deferred Compensation Plan”) for highly compensated employees whose contributions to the 401(k) Plan are limited due to the application of the annual limitations under the Internal Revenue Code, which could then be matched by the Company using the same formula as the 401(k) plan. In the event of bankruptcy, the assets of this plan are available to satisfy the claims of general creditors. The Company has an unsecured obligation to pay, in the future, the value of the deferred compensation and Company match, if applicable, adjusted to reflect the performance, whether positive or negative, of selected investment measurement options chosen by each participant during the deferral period. See Note 4 for further information concerning the Company’s marketable securities held to fulfill our future unsecured obligations under this plan. The liability for compensation deferred under the Deferred Compensation Plan was $65.7 million and $59.5 million as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, respectively, which was included in “Other liabilities” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. The Company expensed contributions under the Deferred Compensation Plan in the amount of less than $0.1 million for each of the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, which were included in “Selling, general and administrative expenses” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. The Company expensed matching contributions under the Deferred Compensation Plan in the amount of $0.1 million and less than $0.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, which were included in “Selling, general and administrative expenses” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. Stock appreciation rights: The Company’s incentive plans provide for the granting of stock appreciation rights, which expire after 10 years and vest 25% per year, over four years, and are settled in cash. As of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, there were 15,044 and 13,079 stock appreciation rights outstanding, respectively. During the nine months ended September 30, 2024, there were 2,491 stock appreciation rights granted, 350 stock appreciation rights exercised, and 176 stock appreciation rights forfeited. The liability for compensation to be paid for redeemed stock appreciation rights was $6.7 million and $4.5 million as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, respectively, which were included in “Other liabilities” on the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. The Company recorded compensation expense for stock appreciation rights in the amount of $1.4 million and compensation benefit for stock appreciation rights in the amount of $0.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, which were included in “Selling, general and administrative expenses” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income. The Company recorded compensation expense for stock appreciation rights in the amount of $3.1 million and $0.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, which were included in “Selling, general and administrative expenses” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income.

COMMITMENTS

COMMITMENTS	9 Months Ended
COMMITMENTS	Sep. 30, 2024
Commitments
Commitments	NOTE 13 – COMMITMENTS The Company has a conditional agreement to purchase federal renewable energy tax credits (“RETC”). As of September 30, 2024, the Company had a remaining commitment to purchase approximately $200 million RETCs, with the final closing payment anticipated to occur by June of 2025.

EARNINGS PER SHARE

EARNINGS PER SHARE	9 Months Ended
EARNINGS PER SHARE	Sep. 30, 2024
Earnings Per Share
Earnings per share	NOTE 14 – EARNINGS PER SHARE The following table illustrates the computation of basic and diluted earnings per share for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 (in thousands, except per share data): For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Numerator (basic and diluted): Net income $ 665,464 $ 649,827 $ 1,835,550 $ 1,794,077 Denominator: Weighted-average common shares outstanding – basic 57,998 60,082 58,563 60,905 Effect of stock options (1) 337 508 379 540 Weighted-average common shares outstanding – assuming dilution 58,335 60,590 58,942 61,445 Earnings per share: Earnings per share-basic $ 11.47 $ 10.82 $ 31.34 $ 29.46 Earnings per share-assuming dilution $ 11.41 $ 10.72 $ 31.14 $ 29.20 Antidilutive potential common shares not included in the calculation of diluted earnings per share: Stock options (1) 92 83 115 98 Weighted-average exercise price per share of antidilutive stock options (1) $ 1,026.97 $ 853.21 $ 977.48 $ 824.23 (1) See Note 12 for further information concerning the terms of the Company’s share-based compensation plans. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, the computation of diluted earnings per share did not include certain securities. These securities represent underlying stock options not included in the computation of diluted earnings per share, because the inclusion of such equity awards would have been antidilutive. See Note 9 for information concerning the Company’s subsequent share repurchases.

LEGAL MATTERS

LEGAL MATTERS	9 Months Ended
LEGAL MATTERS	Sep. 30, 2024
Legal Matters
Legal matters	NOTE 15 – LEGAL MATTERS The Company is currently involved in litigation incidental to the ordinary conduct of the Company’s business. Based on existing facts and historical patterns, the Company accrues for litigation losses in instances where an adverse outcome is probable and the Company is able to reasonably estimate the probable loss in accordance with Accounting Standard Codification 450-20. The Company also accrues for an estimate of legal costs to be incurred for litigation matters. Although the Company cannot ascertain the amount of liability that it may incur from legal matters, it does not currently believe that, in the aggregate, these matters, taking into account applicable insurance and accruals, will have a material adverse effect on its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows in a particular quarter or annual period.

RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENT

RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS	9 Months Ended
RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS	Sep. 30, 2024
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Recent accounting pronouncements	NOTE 16 – RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS In November of 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”) issued Accounting Standard Update (“ASU”) No. 2023-07, “Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures” (“ASU 2023-07”). ASU 2023-07 increases the disclosures about a public entity’s reportable segments. Under ASU 2023-07, a public entity would be required to disclose significant segment expenses that are regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker (“CODM”), a description of other segment items by reportable segment, annual disclosures about a reportable segment’s profit or loss and assets required by Topic 280 in interim periods, any additional measures of a segment’s profit or loss used by the CODM to allocate resources, and the title and position of the CODM. ASU 2023-07 is effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2023, and interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024. ASU 2023-07 allows for early adoption and requires retrospective adoption. The Company will adopt this guidance beginning with its fourth quarter ending December 31, 2024. The application of this new guidance is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows, as the guidance pertains to disclosure only. In December of 2023, FASB issued Accounting Standard Update ASU No. 2023-09, “Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures” (“ASU 2023-09”). Under ASU 2023-09, a public entity will be required to disclose specific categories in the rate reconciliation and provide additional information for reconciling items that meet a quantitative threshold, such as if the effect of the reconciling item is equal to or greater than five percent of the amount computed by multiplying pretax income/loss by the applicable statutory income tax rate. Entities would also have to disclose the amount of income taxes paid disaggregated by federal, state, and foreign taxes and the amount of income taxes paid disaggregated by individual jurisdictions in which income taxes paid is equal to or greater than five percent of total income taxes paid, along with income/loss from continuing operations before income tax expense disaggregated between domestic and foreign and income tax expense from continuing operations disaggregated by federal, state, and foreign. ASU 2023-09 is effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2024. ASU 2023-09 allows for early adoption for annual financial statements that have not yet been issued and allows retrospective and prospective adoption. The Company will adopt this guidance beginning with its fourth quarter ending December 31, 2025. The application of this new guidance is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows, as the guidance pertains to disclosure only. In November of 2024, FASB issued Accounting Standard Update ASU No. 2024-03, “Income Statement-Reporting Comprehensive Income-Expense Disaggregation Disclosures (Subtopic 220-40): Disaggregation of Income Statement Expenses” (“ASU 2024-03”). Under 2024-03, a public entity would be required to disclose information about purchases of inventory, employee compensation, depreciation, intangible asset amortization, and depletion for each income statement line item that contains those expenses. Entities would also have to disclose other specific expenses, gains, or losses that are already required to be disclosed under GAAP in this same disclosure, a qualitative description of the amounts remaining that are not separately disaggregated quantitatively, and the total amount of selling expenses, as well as an entity’s definition of selling expenses. ASU 2024-03 is effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2026, and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2027. ASU 2024-03 allows for early adoption and requires either prospective adoption to financial statements issued for reporting periods after the effective date of ASU 2024-03 or retrospectively to any or all prior periods presented in the financial statements. The Company will adopt this guidance beginning with its fourth quarter ending December 31, 2027. The application of this new guidance is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows, as the guidance pertains to disclosure only.

Pay vs Performance Disclosure

Pay vs Performance Disclosure - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
Pay vs Performance Disclosure - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Pay vs Performance Disclosure
Net Income (Loss)	$ 665,464	$ 649,827	$ 1,835,550	$ 1,794,077

Insider Trading Arrangements

Insider Trading Arrangements	3 Months Ended
Insider Trading Arrangements	Sep. 30, 2024
Trading Arrangements, by Individual
Rule 10b5-1 Arrangement Adopted	false
Non-Rule 10b5-1 Arrangement Adopted	false
Rule 10b5-1 Arrangement Terminated	false
Non-Rule 10b5-1 Arrangement Terminated	false

BASIS OF PRESENTATION (Policies

BASIS OF PRESENTATION (Policies)	9 Months Ended
BASIS OF PRESENTATION (Policies)	Sep. 30, 2024
Basis of Presentation.
Principles of consolidation, policy	Principles of consolidation: The condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All inter-company balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Pol

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Policies)	9 Months Ended
VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Policies)	Sep. 30, 2024
Variable Interest Entities
Variable interest entities, policy	The Company has invested in certain tax credit funds that promote renewable energy. These investments generate a return primarily through the realization of federal tax credits and other tax benefits. The Company accounts for the tax attributes of its renewable energy investments using the deferral method. Under this method, realized investment tax credits and other tax benefits are recognized as a reduction of the renewable energy tax credits. The Company has determined its investment in these tax credit funds were investments in variable interest entities (“VIEs”). The Company analyzes any investments in VIEs at inception and again if certain triggering events are identified to determine if it is the primary beneficiary. The Company considers a variety of factors in identifying the entity that holds the power to direct matters that most significantly impact the VIEs’ economic performance including, but not limited to, the ability to direct financing, leasing, construction, and other operating decisions and activities. As of September 30, 2024, the Company had invested in six unconsolidated tax credit fund entities that were considered to be VIEs and concluded it was not the primary beneficiary of any of the entities, as it did not have the power to control the activities that most significantly impact the entities, and has therefore accounted for these investments using the equity method. The Company’s maximum exposure to losses associated with these VIEs is generally limited to its net investment, which was $28.4 million as of September 30, 2024, and was included in “Other assets, net” on the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Polici

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Policies)	9 Months Ended
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Policies)	Sep. 30, 2024
Fair Value Measurements
Fair value of financial instruments	The Company uses the fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used to measure the fair value of certain of its financial instruments. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurement) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurement). The Company uses the income and market approaches to determine the fair value of its assets and liabilities. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are set forth below: ● Level 1 – Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the reporting entity can access at the measurement date. ● Level 2 – Inputs other than quoted prices in active markets included within Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. ● Level 3 – Unobservable inputs for the asset or liability.

WARRANTIES (Policies)

WARRANTIES (Policies)	9 Months Ended
WARRANTIES (Policies)	Sep. 30, 2024
Warranties
Warranties, policy	The Company provides warranties on certain merchandise it sells with warranty periods ranging from 30 days to limited lifetime warranties. The risk of loss arising from warranty claims is typically the obligation of the Company’s suppliers. Certain suppliers provide upfront allowances to the Company in lieu of accepting the obligation for warranty claims. For this merchandise, when sold, the Company bears the risk of loss associated with the cost of warranty claims. Differences between supplier allowances received by the Company, in lieu of warranty obligations and estimated warranty expense, are recorded as an adjustment to cost of sales. Estimated warranty costs, which are recorded as obligations at the time of sale, are based on the historical failure rate of each individual product line. The Company’s historical experience has been that failure rates are relatively consistent over time and that the ultimate cost of warranty claims to the Company has been driven by volume of units sold as opposed to fluctuations in failure rates or the variation of the cost of individual claims.

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Tables

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Tables)	9 Months Ended
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Fair Value Measurements
Valuation of marketable securities	The tables below identify the estimated fair value of the Company’s marketable securities, determined by reference to quoted market prices (Level 1), as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023 (in thousands): September 30, 2024 Quoted Priced in Active Markets Significant Other Significant for Identical Instruments Observable Inputs Unobservable Inputs (Level 1) (Level 2) (Level 3) Total Marketable securities $ 65,677 $ — $ — $ 65,677 December 31, 2023 Quoted Prices in Active Markets Significant Other Significant for Identical Instruments Observable Inputs Unobservable Inputs (Level 1) (Level 2) (Level 3) Total Marketable securities $ 59,508 $ — $ — $ 59,508
Valuation of senior notes	September 30, 2024 December 31, 2023 Carrying Amount Estimated Fair Value Carrying Amount Estimated Fair Value Senior Notes $ 5,319,844 $ 5,268,906 $ 4,820,543 $ 4,687,065

LEASES (Tables)

LEASES (Tables)	9 Months Ended
LEASES (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Leases
Summary of total lease cost	For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Operating lease cost $ 107,146 $ 100,559 $ 315,741 $ 296,624 Short-term operating lease cost 1,965 1,708 6,375 7,213 Variable operating lease cost 29,386 25,696 84,565 75,257 Sublease income (1,315) (1,143) (3,681) (3,632) Total lease cost $ 137,182 $ 126,820 $ 403,000 $ 375,462
Other lease related information	For the Nine Months Ended September 30, 2024 2023 Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities: Operating cash flows from operating leases $ 309,572 $ 291,033 Right-of-use assets obtained in exchange for new operating lease liabilities 291,486 324,893

FINANCING (Tables)

FINANCING (Tables)	9 Months Ended
FINANCING (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Financing
Outstanding financing facilities	September 30, 2024 December 31, 2023 Commercial paper program, weighted-average variable interest rate of 4.980% as of September 30, 2024 and 5.640% as of December 31, 2023 40,000 750,900 3.550% Senior Notes due 2026, effective interest rate of 3.570% 500,000 500,000 5.750% Senior Notes due 2026, effective interest rate of 5.767% 750,000 750,000 3.600% Senior Notes due 2027, effective interest rate of 3.619% 750,000 750,000 4.350% Senior Notes due 2028, effective interest rate of 4.383% 500,000 500,000 3.900% Senior Notes due 2029, effective interest rate of 3.901% 500,000 500,000 4.200% Senior Notes due 2030, effective interest rate of 4.205% 500,000 500,000 1.750% Senior Notes due 2031, effective interest rate of 1.798% 500,000 500,000 4.700% Senior Notes due 2032, effective interest rate of 4.740% 850,000 850,000 5.000% Senior Notes due 2034, effective interest rate of 5.028% 500,000 — Total principal amount of debt 5,390,000 5,600,900 Less: Unamortized discount and debt issuance costs 30,190 30,775 Total long-term debt $ 5,359,810 $ 5,570,125

WARRANTIES (Tables)

WARRANTIES (Tables)	9 Months Ended
WARRANTIES (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Warranties
Changes in product warranty liabilities	Warranty liabilities, balance at December 31, 2023 $ 117,895 Warranty claims (151,873) Warranty accruals 166,195 Foreign currency translation (79) Warranty liabilities, balance at September 30, 2024 $ 132,138

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM (Table

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM (Tables)	9 Months Ended
SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Share Repurchase Program
Schedule of shares repurchased	For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Shares repurchased 498 852 1,545 2,961 Average price per share $ 1,084.28 $ 938.11 $ 1,038.32 $ 874.99 Total investment $ 540,713 $ 799,520 $ 1,604,494 $ 2,590,950

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSI_2

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) (Tables)	9 Months Ended
ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Summary of activity for changes in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)	Foreign Total Accumulated Other Currency (1) Comprehensive Loss Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at June 30, 2024 $ 8,892 $ 8,892 Change in accumulated other comprehensive loss (22,026) (22,026) Accumulated other comprehensive loss, balance at September 30, 2024 $ (13,134) $ (13,134) Foreign Total Accumulated Other Currency (1) Comprehensive Loss Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at December 31, 2023 $ 39,388 $ 39,388 Change in accumulated other comprehensive loss (52,522) (52,522) Accumulated other comprehensive loss, balance at September 30, 2024 $ (13,134) $ (13,134) Foreign Total Accumulated Other Currency (1) Comprehensive Income Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at June 30, 2023 $ 36,071 $ 36,071 Change in accumulated other comprehensive loss (5,782) (5,782) Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at September 30, 2023 $ 30,289 $ 30,289 Foreign Total Accumulated Other Currency (1) Comprehensive Income Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at December 31, 2022 $ 2,996 $ 2,996 Change in accumulated other comprehensive income 27,293 27,293 Accumulated other comprehensive income, balance at September 30, 2023 $ 30,289 $ 30,289 (1) Foreign currency translation is not shown net of additional U.S. tax, as other basis differences of non-U.S. subsidiaries are intended to be permanently reinvested.

REVENUE (Tables)

REVENUE (Tables)	9 Months Ended
REVENUE (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Revenue
Disaggregation of revenue	For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Sales to do-it-yourself customers $ 2,215,640 $ 2,206,511 $ 6,366,670 $ 6,254,980 Sales to professional service provider customers 2,032,376 1,914,884 5,901,820 5,480,212 Other sales, sales adjustments, and sales from the acquired Vast Auto stores 116,421 81,985 344,388 245,043 Total sales $ 4,364,437 $ 4,203,380 $ 12,612,878 $ 11,980,235

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND _2

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Tables)	9 Months Ended
SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Employee Stock Option [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Summary of stock options	Shares Weighted- Average (in thousands) Exercise Price Outstanding at December 31, 2023 884 $ 428.50 Granted 70 1,061.73 Exercised (291) 329.59 Forfeited or expired (9) 676.68 Outstanding at September 30, 2024 654 $ 537.18 Exercisable at September 30, 2024 443 $ 393.93
Black-Scholes option pricing model	September 30, 2024 2023 Risk free interest rate 4.18 % 3.92 % Expected life 6.4 Years 6.3 Years Expected volatility 28.2 % 29.0 % Expected dividend yield — % — %
Summary of activity of share-based compensation and benefit plans	For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Compensation expense for stock options awarded $ 5,838 $ 5,977 $ 17,175 $ 17,892 Income tax benefit from compensation expense related to stock options 1,480 1,476 4,355 4,417
Employee stock purchase plan [Member] \| Restricted stock [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Summary of activity of share-based compensation and benefit plans	For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Compensation expense for shares issued under the ESPP $ 1,027 $ 923 $ 2,963 $ 2,663 Income tax benefit from compensation expense related to shares issued under the ESPP 260 228 751 657 Compensation expense for restricted shares awarded 506 477 1,462 1,393 Income tax benefit from compensation expense related to restricted awards $ 128 $ 118 $ 371 $ 344

EARNINGS PER SHARE (Tables)

EARNINGS PER SHARE (Tables)	9 Months Ended
EARNINGS PER SHARE (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2024
Earnings Per Share
Computation of basic and diluted earnings per share	For the Three Months Ended For the Nine Months Ended September 30, September 30, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Numerator (basic and diluted): Net income $ 665,464 $ 649,827 $ 1,835,550 $ 1,794,077 Denominator: Weighted-average common shares outstanding – basic 57,998 60,082 58,563 60,905 Effect of stock options (1) 337 508 379 540 Weighted-average common shares outstanding – assuming dilution 58,335 60,590 58,942 61,445 Earnings per share: Earnings per share-basic $ 11.47 $ 10.82 $ 31.34 $ 29.46 Earnings per share-assuming dilution $ 11.41 $ 10.72 $ 31.14 $ 29.20 Antidilutive potential common shares not included in the calculation of diluted earnings per share: Stock options (1) 92 83 115 98 Weighted-average exercise price per share of antidilutive stock options (1) $ 1,026.97 $ 853.21 $ 977.48 $ 824.23 (1) See Note 12 for further information concerning the terms of the Company’s share-based compensation plans.

Business Combination (Narrative

Business Combination (Narrative) (Details) - Groupe Del Vasto [Member] $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2024 USD ($)	Jan. 22, 2024 item
Business Combination
Business Acquisition, Percentage of Voting Interests Acquired		100%
Number of distribution centers		2
Number of satellite warehouses		6
Number of stores		23
Increase in provisional goodwill and intangibles acquired \| $	$ 0.4
Goodwill [Member]
Business Combination
Initial provisional goodwill and intangibles acquired \| $	$ 109.8

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Nar

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Narrative) (Details) $ in Millions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024 USD ($) entity
Variable Interest Entities
Number of unconsolidated tax credit fund entities that were considered to be Variable Interest Entities \| entity	6
Equity method investment in VIEs, net \| $	$ 28.4

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Narrat

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2023
Fair Value Measurements
Increase (decrease) in fair value of marketable securities	$ 3.3	$ (1.4)	$ 7.4	$ 3.6
Non-financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis	$ 0		$ 0		$ 0

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Fair V

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Fair Value of Marketable Securities) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Fair Value Measurements
Estimated fair value of marketable securities	$ 65,677	$ 59,508
Fair value, inputs, Level 1 [Member]
Fair Value Measurements
Estimated fair value of marketable securities	$ 65,677	$ 59,508

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Fair_2

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS (Fair Value of Senior Notes) (Details) - Fair value, inputs, Level 2 [Member] - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Fair Value Measurements
Carrying amount of senior notes	$ 5,319,844	$ 4,820,543
Estimated fair value of senior notes	$ 5,268,906	$ 4,687,065

LEASES (Summary of Total Lease

LEASES (Summary of Total Lease Cost) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Leases
Operating lease cost	$ 107,146	$ 100,559	$ 315,741	$ 296,624
Short-term operating lease cost	1,965	1,708	6,375	7,213
Variable operating lease cost	29,386	25,696	84,565	75,257
Sublease income	(1,315)	(1,143)	(3,681)	(3,632)
Total lease cost	$ 137,182	$ 126,820	$ 403,000	$ 375,462

LEASES (Supplemental Cash Flow

LEASES (Supplemental Cash Flow Information) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Leases
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities, operating cash flows from operating leases	$ 309,572	$ 291,033
Right-of-use asset obtained in exchange for new operating lease liability	$ 291,486	$ 324,893

SUPPLIER FINANCE PROGRAMS (Deta

SUPPLIER FINANCE PROGRAMS (Details) - Supplier Finance Programs [Member] - USD ($) $ in Billions	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt instrument term	1 year	1 year
Assets pledged as security or other forms of guarantees	$ 0	$ 0
Accounts payable, trade	$ 4.5	$ 4.4

FINANCING (Unsecured Revolving

FINANCING (Unsecured Revolving Credit Facility) (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Unsecured debt [Member] \| Letter of credit [Member]
Financing
Number of years in debt instrument, term	1 year
Letters of credit	$ 121.9	$ 106.8
Line of credit facility [Member]
Financing
Unsecured revolving credit facility	$ 0	0
Line of credit facility covenant compliance	As of September 30, 2024, the Company remained in compliance with all covenants under the Credit Agreement.
Line of credit facility [Member] \| Unsecured debt [Member]
Financing
Credit agreement inception date	Jun. 15, 2021
Number of years in debt instrument, term	5 years
Current maximum borrowing capacity under credit facility	$ 1,800
Maximum aggregate increase to credit facility allowable	900
Maximum aggregate capacity of credit facility allowable	$ 2,700
Line of credit facility [Member] \| Unsecured debt [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Financing
Consolidated fixed charge coverage ratio	2.50
Line of credit facility [Member] \| Unsecured debt [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Financing
Consolidated fixed charge coverage ratio	3.50
Line of credit facility [Member] \| Unsecured debt [Member] \| Spread over Alternate Base rate [Member]
Financing
Line of credit current interest rate	0%
Line of credit facility [Member] \| Unsecured debt [Member] \| Spread over Term Benchmark Revolving Loans rate [Member]
Financing
Line of credit current interest rate	0.90%
Line of credit facility [Member] \| Unsecured debt [Member] \| Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) [Member]
Financing
Line of credit facility fee percentage	0.10%
Line of credit facility [Member] \| Unsecured debt [Member] \| Letter of credit [Member]
Financing
Number of years in debt instrument, term	1 year
Line of credit facility sublimit	$ 200
Letters of credit	5.4	$ 5.4
Line of credit facility [Member] \| Unsecured debt [Member] \| Swing line revolver [Member]
Financing
Line of credit facility sublimit	$ 75

FINANCING (Commercial Paper Pro

FINANCING (Commercial Paper Program) (Narrative) (Details) - Commercial Paper [Member] $ in Billions	Sep. 30, 2024 USD ($)
Financing
Number of years in debt instrument, term	397 days
Maximum [Member]
Financing
Current maximum borrowing capacity under credit facility	$ 1.8

FINANCING (Senior Notes) (Narra

FINANCING (Senior Notes) (Narrative) (Details) $ in Thousands		9 Months Ended
	Aug. 19, 2024 USD ($) D	Sep. 30, 2024 USD ($) entity D	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($)
Financing
Repayment of senior notes		$ 0	$ 300,000
Senior notes [Member]
Financing
Face amount of senior notes		$ 5,400,000
Number of days in annual interest calculation period \| D		360
Number of guarantors under the senior notes \| entity		0
Debt instrument covenant compliance		Each of the senior notes is subject to certain customary covenants, with which the Company complied as of September 30, 2024.
Minimum [Member] \| Senior notes [Member]
Financing
Interest rate of senior notes		1.75%
Maximum [Member] \| Senior notes [Member]
Financing
Interest rate of senior notes		5.75%
5.000% Senior Notes due 2034 [Member] \| Senior notes [Member]
Financing
Issuance date of senior notes	Aug. 19, 2024
Face amount of senior notes	$ 500,000	$ 500,000
Interest rate of senior notes	5%	5%
Percentage of face value of debt instrument	99.782%
Number of days in annual interest calculation period \| D	360

FINANCING (Outstanding Financin

FINANCING (Outstanding Financing Facilities) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2024	Aug. 19, 2024	Dec. 31, 2023
Financing
Total principal amount of debt	$ 5,390,000		$ 5,600,900
Less: Unamortized discount and debt issuance costs	30,190		30,775
Total long-term debt	5,359,810		5,570,125	[1]
Commercial Paper [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 40,000		$ 750,900
Weighted-average variable interest rate	4.98%		5.64%
Senior notes [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 5,400,000
Senior notes [Member] \| 3.550% Senior Notes due 2026 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 500,000		$ 500,000
Interest rate of senior notes	3.55%		3.55%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	3.57%		3.57%
Senior notes [Member] \| 5.750% Senior Notes due 2026 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 750,000		$ 750,000
Interest rate of senior notes	5.75%		5.75%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	5.767%		5.767%
Senior notes [Member] \| 3.600% Senior Notes due 2027 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 750,000		$ 750,000
Interest rate of senior notes	3.60%		3.60%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	3.619%		3.619%
Senior notes [Member] \| 4.350% Senior Notes due 2028 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 500,000		$ 500,000
Interest rate of senior notes	4.35%		4.35%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	4.383%		4.383%
Senior notes [Member] \| 3.900% Senior Notes due 2029 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 500,000		$ 500,000
Interest rate of senior notes	3.90%		3.90%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	3.901%		3.901%
Senior notes [Member] \| 4.200% Senior Notes due 2030 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 500,000		$ 500,000
Interest rate of senior notes	4.20%		4.20%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	4.205%		4.205%
Senior notes [Member] \| 1.750% Senior Notes due 2031 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 500,000		$ 500,000
Interest rate of senior notes	1.75%		1.75%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	1.798%		1.798%
Senior notes [Member] \| 4.700% Senior Notes due 2032 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 850,000		$ 850,000
Interest rate of senior notes	4.70%		4.70%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	4.74%		4.74%
Senior notes [Member] \| 5.000% Senior Notes due 2034 [Member]
Financing
Debt instrument, principal amount	$ 500,000	$ 500,000
Interest rate of senior notes	5%	5%
Senior notes, effective interest rate	5.028%

[1]The balance sheet at December 31, 2023, has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements at that date but does not include all of the information and footnotes required by United States generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements.

WARRANTIES (Product Warranty Li

WARRANTIES (Product Warranty Liabilities) (Details) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024 USD ($)
Warranties
Warranty liabilities, beginning balance	$ 117,895
Warranty claims	(151,873)
Warranty accruals	166,195
Foreign currency translation	(79)
Warranty liabilities, ending balance	$ 132,138

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM (Narra

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands			1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		166 Months Ended
	Nov. 16, 2023	May 23, 2023	Nov. 08, 2024	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Nov. 08, 2024
Share Repurchase Program [Line Items]
Increase in authorized amount	$ 2,000,000	$ 2,000,000
Cumulative authorized amount	$ 25,800,000
Authorization effective period	3 years	3 years
Remaining balance under share repurchase program				$ 967,700,000		$ 967,700,000
Common stock repurchased, shares				498	852	1,545	2,961
Common stock repurchased, average price per share				$ 1,084.28	$ 938.11	$ 1,038.32	$ 874.99
Common stock repurchased, value				$ 540,713	$ 799,520	$ 1,604,494	$ 2,590,950
Share repurchase program, excise tax						$ 16,000
Subsequent event [Member]
Share Repurchase Program [Line Items]
Common stock repurchased, shares			200					95,800
Common stock repurchased, average price per share			$ 1,174.84					$ 260.71
Common stock repurchased, value			$ 192,400					$ 25,000,000

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM (Sched

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM (Schedule of Shares Repurchased) (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Share Repurchase Program
Shares repurchased	498	852	1,545	2,961
Average price per share	$ 1,084.28	$ 938.11	$ 1,038.32	$ 874.99
Total investment	$ 540,713	$ 799,520	$ 1,604,494	$ 2,590,950

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSI_3

ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024		Sep. 30, 2023
Balance at beginning of period	$ (1,583,392)	$ (1,627,473)	$ (1,739,278)	[1]	$ (1,060,752)
Change in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)	(22,026)	(5,782)	(52,522)		27,293
Balance at end of period	(1,439,064)	(1,760,469)	(1,439,064)		(1,760,469)
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) [Member]
Balance at beginning of period	8,892	36,071	39,388		2,996
Change in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)	(22,026)	(5,782)	(52,522)		27,293
Balance at end of period	(13,134)	30,289	(13,134)		30,289
Foreign currency [Member]
Balance at beginning of period	8,892	36,071	39,388		2,996
Change in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)	(22,026)	(5,782)	(52,522)		27,293
Balance at end of period	$ (13,134)	$ 30,289	$ (13,134)		$ 30,289

[1]The balance sheet at December 31, 2023, has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements at that date but does not include all of the information and footnotes required by United States generally accepted accounting principles for complete financial statements.

REVENUE (Disaggregation of Reve

REVENUE (Disaggregation of Revenue) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Disaggregation of Revenue
Sales	$ 4,364,437	$ 4,203,380	$ 12,612,878	$ 11,980,235
DIY customer [Member]
Disaggregation of Revenue
Sales	2,215,640	2,206,511	6,366,670	6,254,980
Professional service provider customer [Member]
Disaggregation of Revenue
Sales	2,032,376	1,914,884	5,901,820	5,480,212
Other customers and sales adjustments [Member]
Disaggregation of Revenue
Sales	$ 116,421	$ 81,985	$ 344,388	$ 245,043

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND _3

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Stock Option) (Narrative) (Details) - Stock option [Member] - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Weighted-average grant-date fair value of options awarded	$ 403.77	$ 321.36
Remaining unrecognized compensation expense	$ 48.7
Weighted-average period for cost recognition	2 years 9 months 18 days
Employee Stock Option [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Options expiration period	10 years
Vesting period	4 years
Option vesting rate per year	25%

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND _4

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Other Share-Based Compensation) (Narrative) (Details) - Employee stock purchase plan [Member]	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Employee stock purchase plan stock purchase percentage	85%
Restricted stock [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Vesting period	1 year
Restricted stock [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Vesting period	3 years

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND _5

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Profit Sharing and Savings Plan) (Narrative) (Detail) - Profit sharing and savings plan [Member] - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Profit sharing and savings plan, employer discretionary contribution			$ 0	$ 0
Profit sharing and savings plan, cost recognized	$ 14,000	$ 13,400	$ 40,600	$ 35,900
Employee's first 2% of contributed wages [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Profit sharing and savings plan, Company match			100%
Employee's next 4% of contributed wages [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Profit sharing and savings plan, Company match			25%

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND _6

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan) (Narrative) (Details) - Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan [Member] - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2023
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Deferred compensation plan obligation	$ 65.7		$ 65.7		$ 59.5
Deferred compensation plan cost recognized			$ 0.1
Maximum [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Deferred compensation plan cost recognized	$ 0.1	$ 0.1		$ 0.1

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND _7

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Stock Appreciation Rights) (Narrative) (Details) - Stock Appreciation Rights (SARs) [Member] - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2023
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Stock appreciation rights expiration period			10 years
Stock appreciation rights vesting rate per year			25%
Vesting period			4 years
Stock appreciation rights outstanding	15,044		15,044		13,079
Stock appreciation rights granted during the period, units			2,491
Stock appreciation rights exercised during the period, units			350
Stock appreciation rights forfeited during the period, units			176
Liability for compensation to be paid for redeemed stock appreciation rights	$ 6.7		$ 6.7		$ 4.5
Compensation expense (benefit) for share-based compensation	$ 1.4	$ (0.1)	$ 3.1	$ 0.6

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND _8

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Summary of Stock Options) (Details) - Employee Stock Option [Member] - $ / shares shares in Thousands	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Outstanding shares, beginning balance	884
Outstanding weighted-average exercise price, beginning balance	$ 428.50
Granted, shares	70
Granted, weighted-average exercise price	$ 1,061.73
Exercised, shares	(291)
Exercised, weighted-average exercise price	$ 329.59
Forfeited or expired, shares	(9)
Forfeited or expired, weighted-average exercise price	$ 676.68
Outstanding shares, ending balance	654
Outstanding weighted-average exercise price, ending balance	$ 537.18
Exercisable shares, ending balance	443
Exercisable weighted-average exercise price, ending balance	$ 393.93

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND _9

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Black-Scholes Option Pricing Model) (Details) - Employee Stock Option	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Risk-free interest rate	4.18%	3.92%
Expected life	6 years 4 months 24 days	6 years 3 months 18 days
Expected volatility	28.20%	29%
Expected dividend yield	0%	0%

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND_10

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Stock Option Activity) (Details) - Employee Stock Option [Member] - Stock option [Member] - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Compensation expense (benefit) for share-based compensation	$ 5,838	$ 5,977	$ 17,175	$ 17,892
Income tax benefit from compensation expense for share-based compensation	$ 1,480	$ 1,476	$ 4,355	$ 4,417

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND_11

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION AND BENEFIT PLANS (Other Share-Based Compensation Activity) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Employee stock purchase plan [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Compensation expense (benefit) for share-based compensation	$ 1,027	$ 923	$ 2,963	$ 2,663
Income tax benefit from compensation expense for share-based compensation	260	228	751	657
Restricted stock [Member]
Share-Based Compensation and Benefit Plans
Compensation expense (benefit) for share-based compensation	506	477	1,462	1,393
Income tax benefit from compensation expense for share-based compensation	$ 128	$ 118	$ 371	$ 344

COMMITMENTS (Commitments) (Narr

COMMITMENTS (Commitments) (Narrative) (Details) $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2024 USD ($)
Commitments
Purchase commitment	$ 200

EARNINGS PER SHARE (Computation

EARNINGS PER SHARE (Computation of Basic and Diluted Earnings Per Share) (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2024	Sep. 30, 2023
Numerator (basic and diluted):
Net Income (Loss)	$ 665,464	$ 649,827	$ 1,835,550	$ 1,794,077
Denominator:
Denominator for basic earnings per share - weighted-average shares	57,998	60,082	58,563	60,905
Effect of stock options	337	508	379	540
Denominator for diluted earnings per share - weighted-average shares and assumed conversion	58,335	60,590	58,942	61,445
Earnings per share - basic	$ 11.47	$ 10.82	$ 31.34	$ 29.46
Earnings per share - assuming dilution	$ 11.41	$ 10.72	$ 31.14	$ 29.20
Antidilutive stock options	92	83	115	98
Weighted-average exercise price per share of antidilutive stock options	$ 1,026.97	$ 853.21	$ 977.48	$ 824.23