Legal & General Group Plc Boosts Stock Holdings in Copart, Inc. $CPRT

Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,749,271 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 276,586 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in Copart were worth $258,545,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Copart by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 371,603 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,711,000 after buying an additional 45,346 shares in the last quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Copart by 89.0% during the second quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 2,548,275 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $125,044,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200,035 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Copart by 3.2% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 40,175,058 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,806,674,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236,101 shares in the last quarter. Yacktman Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Copart in the third quarter worth $3,382,000. Finally, Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. grew its position in shares of Copart by 7.2% in the third quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 3,181,919 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $143,091,000 after purchasing an additional 212,520 shares in the last quarter. 85.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Copart

In related news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 25,137 shares of the company’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 value of $1,009,753.29. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 55,970 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 9.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on CPRT shares. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $32.00 target price (down from $33.00) on shares of Copart in a research note 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. Robert W. Baird set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Copart and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Copart from $45.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, CJS Securities raised shares of Copart to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.40.

Copart Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CPRT opened at $35.55 on Thursday. Copart, Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.81 and a 52-week high of $63.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $38.89 and a 200 day moving average of $41.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.22 and a beta of 1.09.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The business services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.03). Copart had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 33.76%.The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.40 earnings per share. Copart’s revenue was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Copart, Inc. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.