Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $13.00 price target on shares of Cars.com in a report on Monday, April 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Cars.com from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Cars.com from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Cars.com from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, B. Riley Financial downgraded shares of Cars.com from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $14.67.

Cars.com Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CARS opened at $11.29 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $10.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $10.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $631.33 million, a PE ratio of 26.27 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.87. Cars.com has a 12 month low of $7.40 and a 12 month high of $13.97.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.03). Cars.com had a net margin of 3.73% and a return on equity of 18.12%. The firm had revenue of $180.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $180.16 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Cars.com will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cars.com

In related news, CFO Sonia Jain sold 52,579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.56, for a total transaction of $502,655.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 346,854 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,315,924.24. This trade represents a 13.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 3.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cars.com

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CARS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Cars.com by 143.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 531,486 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,495,000 after acquiring an additional 313,128 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its stake in shares of Cars.com by 487.0% in the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 160,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,953,000 after acquiring an additional 133,002 shares in the last quarter. Kestrel Investment Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Cars.com in the fourth quarter worth about $3,752,000. LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in Cars.com by 83.3% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 191,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,330,000 after purchasing an additional 86,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Breach Inlet Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Cars.com in the fourth quarter valued at about $8,899,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.15% of the company’s stock.

Cars.com Company Profile

Cars.com operates as a leading online automotive marketplace in the United States, connecting car shoppers with new and used vehicle listings from dealerships and private sellers. The platform enables consumers to research makes and models, compare prices, read expert and user reviews, and access tools such as TrueCost to estimate ownership expenses over time. Through its website and mobile applications, Cars.com aims to simplify the car-buying process by aggregating detailed vehicle data, payment calculators, and dealership ratings into a single user-friendly experience.

On the dealer side, Cars.com provides a suite of marketing and lead-generation services designed to help automotive retailers reach potential buyers and manage their online presence.