CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) Sets New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

Shares of CoreCivic, Inc. (NYSE:CXW) reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $15.74 and last traded at $15.9740, with a volume of 261837 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $16.74.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on CXW. JonesTrading reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of CoreCivic in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of CoreCivic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.00.

CoreCivic Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a PE ratio of 15.89 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The business’s 50 day moving average is $18.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.09.

CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.16). CoreCivic had a net margin of 5.27% and a return on equity of 8.17%. The business had revenue of $603.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $585.12 million. CoreCivic’s revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.39 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that CoreCivic, Inc. will post 1.5 EPS for the current year.

CoreCivic declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, November 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $200.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to purchase up to 10.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of CoreCivic

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rubric Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of CoreCivic by 140.6% during the third quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 1,961,446 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $39,915,000 after purchasing an additional 1,146,166 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in CoreCivic by 361.3% during the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,260,637 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,562,000 after buying an additional 987,375 shares during the last quarter. Hatch Cove Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CoreCivic during the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,951,000. Philosophy Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of CoreCivic by 144.9% during the 3rd quarter. Philosophy Capital Management LLC now owns 1,021,373 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $20,785,000 after acquiring an additional 604,311 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Turiya Advisors Asia Ltd purchased a new position in shares of CoreCivic in the third quarter valued at $9,748,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.13% of the company’s stock.

CoreCivic Company Profile

CoreCivic, Inc (NYSE: CXW) is a real estate investment trust specializing in the ownership, management and operation of private correctional and detention facilities in the United States. The company enters into contracts with federal, state and local government agencies to house inmates and detainees in facilities that it owns or operates on a concession basis. In addition to traditional prison operations, CoreCivic provides specialized services such as community-based reentry programs, electronic monitoring and rehabilitation initiatives aimed at reducing recidivism.

CoreCivic’s portfolio encompasses a mix of adult correctional facilities, immigration detention centers, residential reentry centers and other community-based programs.