Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 47,255 Shares of Copart, Inc. $CPRT

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group trimmed its Copart stake by 2.1%, selling 47,255 shares and leaving it with 2,244,156 shares worth about $87.9 million at quarter-end.
• CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 25,137 shares on January 15 at an average price of $40.17, cutting his ownership by roughly 31% and leaving insiders with about 9.6% of the stock.
• Copart missed Q4 expectations (EPS $0.36 vs. $0.39; revenue $1.12B, down 3.6% YoY), and analysts are mixed—average rating "Hold" with a $44.40 target and divergent price targets ranging roughly $32–$48.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,244,156 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 47,255 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Copart worth $87,859,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Coerente Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Copart in the fourth quarter worth $229,000. Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Copart by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 24,718 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $968,000 after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Copart by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 31,049 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,274,000 after purchasing an additional 5,911 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Copart by 73.7% in the fourth quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 28,138 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,102,000 after purchasing an additional 11,940 shares during the period. Finally, Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Copart by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 16,919 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $662,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.78% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Copart

In other Copart news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 25,137 shares of Copart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.17, for a total value of $1,009,753.29. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 55,970 shares in the company, valued at $2,248,314.90. The trade was a 30.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 9.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on CPRT. Robert W. Baird set a $48.00 price target on Copart and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Copart from $45.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Zacks Research cut Copart from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Barclays restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $32.00 price target (down from $33.00) on shares of Copart in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Copart in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $44.40.

Copart Stock Up 1.5%

Copart stock opened at $33.25 on Tuesday. Copart, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.20 and a 12-month high of $63.85. The business's 50-day moving average price is $35.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $39.25. The stock has a market cap of $32.03 billion, a PE ratio of 20.78 and a beta of 1.14.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The business services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.03). Copart had a net margin of 33.76% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. The business's revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Copart, Inc. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Copart 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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