OPENLANE (NYSE:KAR) Hits New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

OPENLANE, Inc. (NYSE:KAR)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $22.47 and last traded at $22.64, with a volume of 263 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $21.96.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on KAR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of OPENLANE from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $23.00 to $20.00 in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Stephens upgraded shares of OPENLANE from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $20.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $25.00 price objective on shares of OPENLANE in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of OPENLANE from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday.

OPENLANE Stock Up 1.6%

The company has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a PE ratio of 42.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.84.

OPENLANE (NYSE:KAR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $460.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $445.70 million. OPENLANE had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 6.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.19 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that OPENLANE, Inc. will post 0.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On OPENLANE

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in OPENLANE during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in OPENLANE by 414.6% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,182 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,758 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of OPENLANE by 435.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,535 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 2,062 shares during the period. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of OPENLANE in the 1st quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of OPENLANE in the fourth quarter worth about $68,000. 99.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

OPENLANE Company Profile

OPENLANE, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a digital marketplace for used vehicles, which connects sellers and buyers in North America, Europe, the Philippines, and Uruguay. The company operates through two segments, Marketplace and Finance. The Marketplace segment offers digital marketplace services for buying and selling used vehicles.