Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Copart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Copart and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $32.00 target price (down from $33.00) on shares of Copart in a report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Copart from $45.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Copart presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.40.

Copart Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CPRT opened at $35.89 on Tuesday. Copart has a 1 year low of $33.81 and a 1 year high of $63.85. The firm has a market cap of $34.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.43 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $39.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.33.

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

Insider Transactions at Copart

In other Copart news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 25,137 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 55,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,248,314.90. This represents a 30.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CPRT. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Copart by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 28,978 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,422,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc grew its position in Copart by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 5,196 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its stake in Copart by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 2,088 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the period. Unique Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Copart by 2.3% in the third quarter. Unique Wealth LLC now owns 10,785 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $485,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tobam boosted its position in shares of Copart by 22.9% in the second quarter. Tobam now owns 1,340 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. 85.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.