Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) Stock Price Expected to Rise, BTIG Research Analyst Says

Key Points

• BTIG Research raised its Cars.com price target to $16 from $14 and maintained a Buy rating, implying 17.48% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: Cars.com has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average target price of $14.92, though some analysts rate it Hold.
• In its latest quarter, Cars.com beat earnings estimates with EPS of $0.58 versus $0.54 expected, while revenue of $181.88 million fell short of forecasts; revenue grew 0.2% year over year.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by analysts at BTIG Research from $14.00 to $16.00 in a research note issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. BTIG Research's price target indicates a potential upside of 17.48% from the company's previous close.

CARS has been the topic of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Cars.com from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Cars.com from $13.00 to $11.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Cars.com from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cars.com currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $14.92.

Cars.com Stock Performance

Shares of CARS stock traded up $0.87 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $13.62. 650,903 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 934,674. The company has a current ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $729.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.74 and a beta of 1.66. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.58. Cars.com has a 52-week low of $7.40 and a 52-week high of $13.69.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.04. Cars.com had a return on equity of 18.82% and a net margin of 4.73%. The business had revenue of $181.88 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $183.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.48 earnings per share. Cars.com's revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Cars.com will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cars.com

In related news, insider Angelique Marks sold 57,980 shares of Cars.com stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.94, for a total transaction of $692,281.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 149,636 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,786,653.84. This trade represents a 27.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Donald McGovern sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.25, for a total value of $98,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 102,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,260,525. The trade was a 7.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 3.36% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pale Fire Capital SE increased its position in shares of Cars.com by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Pale Fire Capital SE now owns 4,008,218 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,850,000 after purchasing an additional 51,600 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Cars.com by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,401,523 shares of the company's stock worth $27,620,000 after buying an additional 262,443 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in Cars.com by 77.9% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 580,189 shares of the company's stock worth $4,711,000 after buying an additional 253,991 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Cars.com by 16.7% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 440,809 shares of the company's stock worth $3,579,000 after buying an additional 63,234 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Cars.com in the second quarter worth approximately $2,748,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.15% of the company's stock.

About Cars.com

Cars.com Inc NYSE: CARS operates a digital automotive marketplace that connects consumers with automotive dealers and manufacturers. Its platform enables shoppers to research vehicles, compare listings, read reviews, obtain financing information and connect with sellers when buying new or used cars.

The company provides automotive retailers with digital marketing, advertising, inventory merchandising, website and digital retailing solutions, as well as data and analytics tools. Its portfolio includes the Cars.com marketplace and related brands and services focused on dealer reviews, vehicle financing, automotive content and customer engagement.

Cars.com primarily serves the United States automotive market, working with consumers, franchised and independent dealerships, original equipment manufacturers and other industry participants.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.