Copart, Inc. $CPRT Shares Purchased by Sit Investment Associates Inc.

Key Points

• Sit Investment Associates Inc. increased its stake in Copart, Inc. by 9.8% during the first quarter, with holdings valued at approximately $4.2 million after purchasing an additional 6,650 shares.
• Copart's latest earnings report showed earnings per share of $0.42, meeting analyst expectations, while revenue totaled $1.21 billion, slightly below estimates.
• CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 24,088 shares of Copart stock for about $1.12 million, a move that decreased his ownership by 43.31%.

Sit Investment Associates Inc. raised its stake in Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT - Free Report) by 9.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 74,373 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,650 shares during the quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc.'s holdings in Copart were worth $4,209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its stake in shares of Copart by 289.6% in the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 34,322 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,970,000 after buying an additional 25,512 shares in the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Copart in the first quarter valued at approximately $604,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Copart by 52.2% in the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 23,862 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,350,000 after buying an additional 8,181 shares in the last quarter. Voleon Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Copart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,314,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in shares of Copart by 53.3% in the first quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 854,336 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $48,347,000 after buying an additional 297,210 shares in the last quarter. 85.78% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Copart Price Performance

CPRT traded up $0.3450 on Tuesday, reaching $47.7050. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,987,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,668,104. The stock has a market cap of $46.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.38 and a beta of 1.04. Copart, Inc. has a 1 year low of $45.05 and a 1 year high of $64.38. The business's 50 day moving average is $47.49 and its 200 day moving average is $53.75.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The business services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.42. Copart had a return on equity of 18.20% and a net margin of 32.21%.The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.39 earnings per share. Copart's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Copart, Inc. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stephens initiated coverage on Copart in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Copart from $64.00 to $55.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Copart from $60.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $53.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Copart

In other news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 24,088 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.43, for a total transaction of $1,118,405.84. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 31,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,463,798.61. This represents a 43.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 9.68% of the company's stock.

Copart Company Profile

Copart, Inc provides online auctions and vehicle remarketing services. It offers a range of services for processing and selling vehicles over the Internet through its Virtual Bidding Third Generation Internet auction-style sales technology on behalf of vehicle sellers, insurance companies, banks and finance companies, charities, and fleet operators and dealers, as well as individual owners.