65,100 Shares in Copart, Inc. $CPRT Purchased by Narwhal Capital Management

Narwhal Capital Management purchased a new stake in Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 65,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,928,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CPRT. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Copart by 92.1% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,215 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $816,000 after purchasing an additional 6,817 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Copart by 25.2% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 29,436 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,666,000 after buying an additional 5,918 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Copart in the first quarter valued at about $218,000. Ascent Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Copart in the first quarter valued at about $221,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Copart by 21.3% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 102,465 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,798,000 after acquiring an additional 18,020 shares in the last quarter. 85.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Copart

In related news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 24,283 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.79, for a total transaction of $1,087,635.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 31,332 shares in the company, valued at $1,403,360.28. This represents a 43.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas N. Tryforos sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.07, for a total transaction of $3,907,000.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 9.60% of the company’s stock.

Copart Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of CPRT stock opened at $39.83 on Friday. Copart, Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.41 and a twelve month high of $63.85. The company has a market cap of $38.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.29 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.16.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The business services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.18 billion. Copart had a return on equity of 17.78% and a net margin of 34.24%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Copart, Inc. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on CPRT. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Copart in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Copart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $33.00 price target (up previously from $32.00) on shares of Copart in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Copart from $55.00 to $52.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Copart from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.60.

About Copart

Copart (NASDAQ: CPRT) is a global provider of online vehicle auction and remarketing services, focused primarily on the sale of salvage and clean-title vehicles. The company operates a technology-driven auction platform that connects sellers — including insurance companies, vehicle finance firms, rental car companies, dealerships and fleet owners — with a broad buyer base consisting of vehicle dismantlers, recyclers, rebuilders and retail buyers. Copart’s business model centers on efficient vehicle disposition using digital bidding and logistics services to maximize recovery value for its clients.

Core services include hosting live and timed online auctions, vehicle listing and inspection support, title processing, and transportation and storage solutions.