Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) Earns Buy Rating from BTIG Research

Key Points

• BTIG Research reissued a "buy" on Cars.com with a $13 price target, implying roughly a 42.7% upside from the current price.
• Analyst views are mixed—4 Buys, 2 Holds and 2 Sells—resulting in a MarketBeat consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $16.08.
• Cars.com missed Q results (EPS $0.44 vs. $0.56 expected) with revenue roughly in line; the stock trades around $9.11, market cap about $534M, and a 12‑month range of $7.40–$13.97.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reissued by equities research analysts at BTIG Research in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $13.00 price target on the stock. BTIG Research's price objective would suggest a potential upside of 42.70% from the company's current price.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on CARS. UBS Group lifted their target price on Cars.com from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $25.00 price target on shares of Cars.com in a report on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Cars.com from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $10.00 target price (down from $16.00) on shares of Cars.com in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Cars.com from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cars.com currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.08.

Cars.com Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CARS opened at $9.11 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average is $9.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.94. The company has a market cap of $534.21 million, a P/E ratio of 28.47 and a beta of 1.46. Cars.com has a 12-month low of $7.40 and a 12-month high of $13.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $183.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $183.44 million. Cars.com had a net margin of 2.77% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Cars.com will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cars.com

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Cars.com in the third quarter worth approximately $1,673,000. Villanova Investment Management Co LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 36.7% during the 3rd quarter. Villanova Investment Management Co LLC now owns 367,070 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,486,000 after purchasing an additional 98,559 shares in the last quarter. Hill Path Capital LP lifted its stake in shares of Cars.com by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hill Path Capital LP now owns 2,481,032 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,318,000 after purchasing an additional 468,000 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Cars.com in the third quarter worth $2,496,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Cars.com by 143.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 531,486 shares of the company's stock worth $6,495,000 after purchasing an additional 313,128 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.15% of the company's stock.

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.