Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Analysts at Wall Street Zen downgraded Cars.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating, reflecting a shift in market sentiment.
• Cars.com reported earnings of $0.41 per share for the previous quarter, missing analyst estimates and showing a slight revenue decline of 0.1% year-over-year.
• Current consensus rating for Cars.com is "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $17.90, while institutional ownership stands at 89.15%.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research cut Cars.com from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and set a $22.00 target price (up previously from $21.00) on shares of Cars.com in a report on Friday, August 8th. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Cars.com in a report on Thursday, August 21st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Cars.com from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Cars.com from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cars.com has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $17.90.

Cars.com Trading Up 2.8%

NYSE:CARS opened at $11.31 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $694.58 million, a P/E ratio of 18.23 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The company has a fifty day moving average of $12.31 and a 200 day moving average of $11.85. Cars.com has a 52 week low of $9.56 and a 52 week high of $20.47.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $178.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $179.43 million. Cars.com had a net margin of 5.71% and a return on equity of 17.43%. Cars.com's revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.38 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Cars.com will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Cars.com

In other Cars.com news, insider Matthew B. Crawford sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.77, for a total transaction of $176,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 98,461 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,158,885.97. This trade represents a 13.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 2.39% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CARS. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Cars.com by 624.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,690 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 4,043 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 16.9% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,838 shares of the company's stock valued at $133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,710 shares during the last quarter. Peregrine Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cars.com during the first quarter valued at approximately $3,273,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Cars.com by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 296,907 shares of the company's stock worth $3,346,000 after purchasing an additional 7,725 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cars.com by 13.2% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 398,000 shares of the company's stock worth $4,485,000 after buying an additional 46,562 shares during the last quarter. 89.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cars.com Company Profile

Cars.com Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a digital automotive marketplace that connects local car dealers to consumers in the United States. The company offers a suite of digital solutions that creates connections between individuals researching cars or looking to purchase a car with car dealerships and automotive original equipment manufacturers.

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