Copart, Inc. $CPRT Shares Sold by Renaissance Technologies LLC

Key Points

• Renaissance Technologies cut its Copart stake by 70.7% in the first quarter, selling 1.4 million shares and retaining 580,500 shares worth approximately $19.3 million. Institutional investors still own 85.78% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with ratings ranging from strong buy to strong sell. Copart has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.50.
• Copart beat quarterly expectations, reporting $0.43 earnings per share versus a $0.41 estimate and $1.24 billion in revenue, up 2.1% year over year. Separately, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 27,745 shares for approximately $846,000.

Renaissance Technologies LLC reduced its position in shares of Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT - Free Report) by 70.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 580,500 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,402,400 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.06% of Copart worth $19,273,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Copart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cache Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Copart in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in Copart during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Triumph Capital Management raised its stake in Copart by 424.2% in the fourth quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 1,017 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 823 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in Copart by 129.2% in the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 1,350 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 761 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.78% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CPRT shares. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Copart to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Barclays set a $26.00 price target on shares of Copart and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $45.00 target price on Copart in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Copart from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Copart from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $43.50.

Insider Transactions at Copart

In related news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 27,745 shares of the company'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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,038,054.09. This represents a 21.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.60% of the company's stock.

Copart Price Performance

Copart stock opened at $29.57 on Friday. Copart, Inc. has a 12-month low of $26.81 and a 12-month high of $50.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.37 and a beta of 1.02. The firm's 50-day moving average is $29.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.79.

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

Copart Company Profile

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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