Nicholas Company Inc. Makes New $6.38 Million Investment in Openlane $OPLN

Key Points

• Nicholas Company Inc. disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Openlane, buying 214,246 shares valued at about $6.38 million. It now owns roughly 0.20% of the company.
• Openlane reported better-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, posting $0.35 EPS versus $0.32 expected, while revenue rose 14.8% year over year to $527.9 million. The company also reaffirmed guidance of 1.280–1.420 EPS for FY2026.
• Despite the bullish institutional buying, insiders have been selling shares, including two EVP transactions on May 6 that together topped $3 million. Analyst sentiment is mixed, but the stock still carries a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $38.

Nicholas Company Inc. bought a new position in shares of Openlane (NYSE:OPLN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 214,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,380,000. Nicholas Company Inc. owned 0.20% of Openlane as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in Openlane during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in Openlane during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Fifth Third Bancorp bought a new stake in shares of Openlane in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. North Star Investment Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Openlane in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Openlane in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $149,000. Institutional investors own 99.76% of the company's stock.

Openlane Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE OPLN opened at $37.91 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $29.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -37.16 and a beta of 1.22. Openlane has a one year low of $21.62 and a one year high of $38.49.

Openlane (NYSE:OPLN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.03. Openlane had a return on equity of 13.00% and a net margin of 9.47%.The business had revenue of $527.90 million during the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.31 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Openlane has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.280-1.420 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Openlane will post 1.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Openlane news, EVP Tobin P. Richer sold 66,709 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.77, for a total transaction of $2,386,180.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 28,697 shares in the company, valued at $1,026,491.69. This represents a 69.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Charles S. Coleman sold 19,763 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.86, for a total value of $708,701.18. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 74,334 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,665,617.24. This represents a 21.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 189,916 shares of company stock worth $6,181,273 over the last three months. 2.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Openlane from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Stephens increased their price objective on Openlane from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Northcoast Research set a $40.00 price objective on Openlane in a research report on Wednesday. Zacks Research raised Openlane from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $40.00 price objective on Openlane in a research report on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $38.00.

Openlane Profile

Openlane, Inc operates a digital wholesale vehicle marketplace that facilitates the remarketing of used vehicles for commercial consignors and retail dealers. The company provides an online auction platform that enables buyers and sellers to transact in real time, connecting franchised and independent dealers, fleet operators, rental companies, manufacturers and financial institutions. Its marketplace focuses on vehicles from lease returns, fleet and commercial fleets, repossessions and dealer trade-ins.

In addition to the core auction and listing services, Openlane offers a suite of remarketing support services designed to simplify the end-to-end sale process.

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