Pictet North America Advisors SA Takes $2.59 Million Position in Copart, Inc. $CPRT

Pictet North America Advisors SA purchased a new stake in Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 66,191 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,591,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Copart by 298.2% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,887,359 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $217,243,000 after acquiring an additional 3,660,031 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Copart by 2,266.7% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,689,003 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $165,895,000 after purchasing an additional 3,533,133 shares during the period. Akre Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Copart by 253.1% in the third quarter. Akre Capital Management LLC now owns 4,236,760 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $190,527,000 after purchasing an additional 3,036,760 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in Copart by 75.2% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,579,404 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $322,851,000 after purchasing an additional 2,824,991 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Copart by 2.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 108,990,652 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,901,310,000 after purchasing an additional 2,581,784 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.78% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CPRT. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Copart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $32.00 target price (down from $33.00) on shares of Copart in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Copart from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Copart in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Copart from $45.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.40.

Copart Trading Down 0.5%

Copart stock opened at $33.02 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $36.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.01. Copart, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.20 and a 12 month high of $63.85. The company has a market capitalization of $31.81 billion, a PE ratio of 20.64 and a beta of 1.09.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The business services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.03). Copart had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 33.76%.The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Copart, Inc. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Copart news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 25,137 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.17, for a total transaction of $1,009,753.29. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 55,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,248,314.90. The trade was a 30.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 9.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.