Rathbones Group PLC Raises Stock Holdings in Copart, Inc. $CPRT

Rathbones Group PLC increased its position in Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) by 990.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 90,009 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 81,758 shares during the period. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in Copart were worth $3,524,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CPRT. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Copart in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Copart during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Copart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. LRI Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Copart by 125.2% during the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 653 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Copart by 54.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 730 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.78% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Copart

In other news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 25,137 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 55,970 shares in the company, valued at $2,248,314.90. This trade represents a 30.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 9.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Copart Stock Up 0.8%

NASDAQ:CPRT opened at $33.11 on Wednesday. Copart, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.20 and a 52 week high of $63.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.90 billion, a PE ratio of 20.69 and a beta of 1.14. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $36.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.59.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) last posted its earnings results 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). 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 analyst estimates of $1.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.40 earnings per share. Copart’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Copart, Inc. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CPRT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Copart from $45.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Zacks Research lowered Copart from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Copart in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. CJS Securities upgraded Copart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $32.00 price objective (down from $33.00) on shares of Copart in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $44.40.

Copart 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.