Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eight research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $44.40.

CPRT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Copart from $45.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. CJS Securities raised shares of Copart to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Copart from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $32.00 price target (down from $33.00) on shares of Copart in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $48.00 price target on Copart and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th.

Copart Stock Down 1.6%

CPRT stock opened at $32.84 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $37.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.61. Copart has a 52-week low of $32.20 and a 52-week high of $63.85. The company has a market capitalization of $31.64 billion, a PE ratio of 20.53 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Copart

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CPRT. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Copart in the fourth quarter worth $569,569,000. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Copart by 25.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 27,728,398 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,085,588,000 after purchasing an additional 5,555,101 shares during the period. Capital International Investors bought a new position in shares of Copart in the 4th quarter worth about $195,637,000. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in shares of Copart by 94.0% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 9,955,661 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $389,764,000 after buying an additional 4,823,111 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Copart by 21.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 21,982,589 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $860,618,000 after buying an additional 3,918,610 shares during the period. 85.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Copart Company Profile

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.