Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires 1,827,203 Shares of Copart, Inc. $CPRT

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management more than doubled its Copart stake by acquiring 1.83 million shares in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 3.31 million shares valued at approximately $93.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 85.78% of Copart.
• Copart exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.43 in earnings per share versus the $0.41 consensus estimate and $1.24 billion in revenue, up 2.1% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with ratings ranging from strong buy to strong sell; MarketBeat reports a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $43.50, compared with the stock’s recent price of $29.66.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT - Free Report) by 123.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,313,222 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,827,203 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.36% of Copart worth $93,400,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Copart by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 333,624 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $11,076,000 after buying an additional 41,060 shares in the last quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions increased its position in Copart by 82.5% during the fourth quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 199,794 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $7,822,000 after acquiring an additional 90,339 shares during the period. Davidson Kahn Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Copart by 56.3% in the 4th quarter. Davidson Kahn Capital Management LLC now owns 100,151 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,921,000 after purchasing an additional 36,091 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Copart by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 507,255 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $19,859,000 after purchasing an additional 34,410 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Copart by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 23,255,161 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $906,836,000 after purchasing an additional 131,703 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.78% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Copart news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 27,745 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.49, for a total transaction of $845,945.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 99,641 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,038,054.09. This trade represents a 21.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 9.60% of the company's stock.

Copart Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of CPRT stock opened at $29.66 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.42 and a beta of 1.01. The business's 50-day moving average price is $29.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.37. Copart, Inc. has a 12 month low of $26.81 and a 12 month high of $50.11.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The business services provider reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. Copart had a net margin of 33.48% and a return on equity of 16.63%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.42 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Copart, Inc. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CPRT shares. Jefferies Financial Group set a $45.00 target price on Copart in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Barclays set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Copart and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Freedom Capital upgraded Copart to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research lowered Copart from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Copart in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $43.50.

About Copart

Copart NASDAQ: CPRT is a global provider of online vehicle auction and remarketing services, focused primarily on the sale of salvage and clean-title vehicles. The company operates a technology-driven auction platform that connects sellers — including insurance companies, vehicle finance firms, rental car companies, dealerships and fleet owners — with a broad buyer base consisting of vehicle dismantlers, recyclers, rebuilders and retail buyers. Copart's business model centers on efficient vehicle disposition using digital bidding and logistics services to maximize recovery value for its clients.

Core services include hosting live and timed online auctions, vehicle listing and inspection support, title processing, and transportation and storage solutions.

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