CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

CoreCivic, Inc. (NYSE:CXW)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $32.88 and last traded at $32.5150, with a volume of 466356 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.23.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CXW has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group set a $35.00 price target on shares of CoreCivic in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Noble Financial lifted their price objective on shares of CoreCivic from $28.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of CoreCivic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 2nd. JonesTrading restated a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of CoreCivic in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CoreCivic from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.00.

CoreCivic Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.86 and a beta of 0.58. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 2.44.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CoreCivic

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of CoreCivic during the 2nd quarter valued at about $480,557,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. raised its holdings in CoreCivic by 273.1% in the 1st quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. now owns 2,173,498 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $41,101,000 after purchasing an additional 1,590,940 shares during the period. Rubric Capital Management LP raised its holdings in CoreCivic by 140.6% in the 3rd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 1,961,446 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,915,000 after purchasing an additional 1,146,166 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in CoreCivic by 361.3% during the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,260,637 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,562,000 after purchasing an additional 987,375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hatch Cove Capital LLC purchased a new position in CoreCivic during the fourth quarter worth approximately $12,951,000. 85.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About CoreCivic

CoreCivic, Inc (NYSE: CXW) is a real estate investment trust specializing in the ownership, management and operation of private correctional and detention facilities in the United States. The company enters into contracts with federal, state and local government agencies to house inmates and detainees in facilities that it owns or operates on a concession basis. In addition to traditional prison operations, CoreCivic provides specialized services such as community-based reentry programs, electronic monitoring and rehabilitation initiatives aimed at reducing recidivism.

CoreCivic’s portfolio encompasses a mix of adult correctional facilities, immigration detention centers, residential reentry centers and other community-based programs.