Copart, Inc. $CPRT Stock: Provident Investment Management Inc. Reduces Stake

Provident Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) by 41.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,837 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 22,785 shares during the quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Copart were worth $896,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Confluence Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Copart by 44.2% during the 3rd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 422,532 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $11,527,000 after acquiring an additional 129,591 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Copart by 14.0% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 333,624 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $11,076,000 after purchasing an additional 41,060 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in Copart by 6.4% during the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 578,452 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,307,000 after purchasing an additional 34,855 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in Copart by 3,034.7% during the third quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 200,557 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,471,000 after purchasing an additional 194,159 shares during the period. Finally, Cohen Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Copart in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,780,000. Institutional investors own 85.78% of the company’s stock.

Copart Price Performance

Shares of Copart stock opened at $29.00 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $26.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50-day moving average of $29.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.63. Copart, Inc. has a 1 year low of $25.72 and a 1 year high of $45.26.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 10th. The business services provider reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.03). Copart had a net margin of 31.81% and a return on equity of 15.93%. The business had revenue of $1.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.41 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Copart, Inc. will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Copart news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 27,745 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.49, for a total transaction of $845,945.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,641 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,038,054.09. This trade represents a 21.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Diane M. Morefield sold 20,000 shares of Copart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.66, for a total transaction of $553,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 50,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,383,000. The trade was a 28.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 9.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Copart in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Copart from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $40.00 price target on shares of Copart in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. BNP Paribas Exane reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $43.00 price target (up from $40.00) on shares of Copart in a report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Copart from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Copart presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.80.

Copart Company Profile

Copart, Inc is a provider of online vehicle auction and remarketing services. The company operates a digital marketplace that connects vehicle sellers with a broad network of buyers, including licensed dismantlers, rebuilders, used-car dealers, exporters and individual consumers.

Copart primarily sells vehicles that have been damaged, declared total losses by insurers, repossessed, donated or otherwise designated for resale. Its services also include vehicle storage, transportation, towing coordination, title processing, inspection and auction support.