Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts remain neutral on Cars.com: Eight analysts give the stock an average “Hold” rating, with five holds and three buys. The average 12-month price target is $14.83, above the reported $11.82 share price.
• Quarterly results met expectations: Cars.com reported earnings of $0.51 per share, matching consensus, while revenue reached $179.93 million, slightly below estimates but up 0.7% year over year.
• Institutional ownership is high, while insider holdings declined: Institutional investors own 89.15% of the stock, with several major firms increasing their positions. CFO Sonia Jain sold 52,579 shares, reducing her stake by 13.16%.

Shares of Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the eight ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $14.8333.

Several equities analysts recently commented on CARS shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Cars.com from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating and set a $14.00 target price on shares of Cars.com in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Cars.com from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Cars.com from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Cars.com from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Sonia Jain sold 52,579 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.56, for a total value of $502,655.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 346,854 shares in the company, valued at $3,315,924.24. This trade represents a 13.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 3.36% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cars.com

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 122.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 29,655 shares of the company's stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 16,347 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 23.4% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 33,860 shares of the company's stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 6,416 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Cars.com by 19.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 242,251 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,730,000 after buying an additional 39,561 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Cars.com by 62.3% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 218,358 shares of the company's stock worth $2,588,000 after buying an additional 83,848 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Cars.com by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 223,879 shares of the company's stock worth $2,653,000 after buying an additional 10,276 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.15% of the company's stock.

Cars.com Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:CARS opened at $11.82 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $11.27 and its 200 day moving average is $10.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 2.00 and a quick ratio of 2.00. Cars.com has a 1 year low of $7.40 and a 1 year high of $13.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $632.78 million, a P/E ratio of 20.74 and a beta of 1.60.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.51. Cars.com had a return on equity of 18.82% and a net margin of 4.73%.The business had revenue of $179.93 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $180.53 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.41 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Cars.com will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Cars.com

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.

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.

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