Cars.com Inc. $CARS Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. reduced its stake in Cars.com by 4.7%, owning approximately 1.90% of the company valued at $13.59 million after selling 58,849 shares in the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors increased their holdings in Cars.com, with GAMMA Investing LLC significantly raising its stake by 624.9% in the same period.
• Cars.com reported missed earnings expectations for the quarter, with an EPS of $0.41, below the consensus estimate of $0.45, alongside a slight revenue decline of 0.1% year-over-year.

American Century Companies Inc. cut its holdings in Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS - Free Report) by 4.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,205,811 shares of the company's stock after selling 58,849 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 1.90% of Cars.com worth $13,589,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Cars.com by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,172,706 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,984,000 after purchasing an additional 55,143 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Cars.com by 10.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 923,314 shares of the company's stock worth $10,406,000 after acquiring an additional 88,463 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Cars.com by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 804,640 shares of the company's stock worth $13,944,000 after acquiring an additional 120,331 shares during the period. SG Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cars.com in the 4th quarter worth $10,908,000. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cars.com by 16.0% in the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 413,769 shares of the company's stock worth $4,663,000 after acquiring an additional 57,225 shares during the period. 89.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cars.com Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CARS traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $13.08. 609,157 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 961,383. The stock has a market cap of $803.45 million, a P/E ratio of 21.09 and a beta of 1.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Cars.com Inc. has a twelve month low of $9.56 and a twelve month high of $20.47. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $12.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.01.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on CARS shares. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and issued a $22.00 target price (up previously from $21.00) on shares of Cars.com in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Cars.com from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Cars.com from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $25.00 price target on shares of Cars.com in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Cars.com from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $14.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $17.30.

Insider Activity at Cars.com

In related news, insider Matthew B. Crawford sold 15,000 shares of the 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 sale, the insider owned 98,461 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,158,885.97. This trade represents a 13.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.