Victory Capital Management Inc. Purchases 92,780 Shares of Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS)

Key Points

• Victory Capital Management Inc. substantially increased its stake in Cars.com by 157.7% in Q1, bringing its total ownership to approximately 151,603 shares valued at $1.7 million.
• Several institutional investors showed significant interest in Cars.com, with Sterling Capital Management increasing its holdings by 813% and GAMMA Investing LLC by 624.9%.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Cars.com, with UBS Group reducing their price target to $12, while JPMorgan Chase upgraded it to $14, resulting in a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $18.30.

Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS - Free Report) by 157.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 151,603 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 92,780 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.24% of Cars.com worth $1,709,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CARS. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Cars.com by 813.0% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,109 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,878 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 624.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,690 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 4,043 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 184.5% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,476 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 2,254 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Cars.com during the 4th quarter worth about $61,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Cars.com during the 4th quarter worth about $132,000. 89.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cars.com

In other news, CEO Thomas Alex Vetter purchased 27,870 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $10.75 per share, with a total value of $299,602.50. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 844,897 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,082,642.75. This trade represents a 3.41% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.39% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CARS has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Cars.com from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $14.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 17th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Cars.com from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $18.30.

Cars.com Price Performance

Shares of Cars.com stock traded down $0.45 during trading on Friday, hitting $12.43. 687,228 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 648,308. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.65. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $11.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $12.78. Cars.com Inc. has a twelve month low of $9.56 and a twelve month high of $20.47. The company has a market cap of $789.36 million, a PE ratio of 18.27 and a beta of 1.76.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.02). Cars.com had a net margin of 6.32% and a return on equity of 16.86%. The business had revenue of $179.02 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $179.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. Cars.com's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Cars.com Inc. will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current year.

About Cars.com

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.