BTIG Research Cuts Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) Price Target to $13.00

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) had its target price reduced by BTIG Research from $17.00 to $13.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

CARS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on Cars.com from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $13.50 price target on shares of Cars.com in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Cars.com in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of Cars.com in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cars.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $16.08.

Cars.com Price Performance

CARS stock opened at $8.58 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.82. Cars.com has a 1 year low of $8.29 and a 1 year high of $13.97. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $11.65 and a 200 day moving average of $11.92. The company has a market cap of $512.87 million, a P/E ratio of 26.80 and a beta of 1.46.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.12). Cars.com had a net margin of 2.77% and a return on equity of 17.21%. The firm had revenue of $183.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $183.44 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Cars.com will post 1.19 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Sonia Jain sold 11,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.45, for a total value of $153,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 243,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,276,984.90. This represents a 4.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Matthew B. Crawford sold 27,358 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.03, for a total transaction of $329,116.74. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 71,103 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $855,369.09. This trade represents a 27.79% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 2.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Cars.com by 119.9% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 2,305 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Cars.com by 27.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,898 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 1,279 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Cars.com by 30.0% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 1,623 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 436.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 6,475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cars.com in the third quarter worth approximately $100,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.15% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Cars.com

Here are the key news stories impacting Cars.com this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record full-year revenue, cash generation and buybacks: Cars.com reported record 2025 revenue of $723M, generated $152M of annual cash from operations and repurchased 7.1M shares for ~$86M (retiring ~9% of shares), which supports shareholder return and balance-sheet flexibility. PR Newswire: Cars.com Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst with large upside: Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $25 price target, signaling a sizable upside scenario if Cars.com executes on dealer monetization and product integration. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG keeps a buy stance despite trimming its target: BTIG lowered its price target from $17 to $13 but retained a “buy” call, indicating some analysts still see recovery potential above current levels. TickerReport: BTIG Research
• Neutral Sentiment: Company product roadmap / marketplace integration and AI plans: Management outlined marketplace integration and plans to advance AI-powered solutions with an expectation of dealer revenue growth in 2026 — constructive for long-term monetization but not immediate upside. Earnings Call Transcript | Slide Deck | MSN
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan keeps a neutral view but trims target: JPMorgan reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and cut its price target to $10 (from $16), reflecting reduced near-term confidence even as upside remains modest against today’s price. Benzinga / Finviz
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 earnings miss and weak guidance: Cars.com reported Q4 EPS $0.44 vs. $0.56 expected and issued FY26 revenue guidance implying only ~0%–2% y/y growth (FY revenue guidance below consensus), which drove investor disappointment and downward pressure on the stock. Press Release / Slide Deck
• Negative Sentiment: Structural concerns and traffic decline: A Seeking Alpha note argues Cars.com faces declining consumer traffic, stagnant dealer growth, margin pressure and a ~$400M net debt load — a thesis that supports continued downside risk and a “Sell” view. Seeking Alpha: Cars.com — A Struggling Business
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple outlets highlight the miss: Coverage from Zacks, MarketBeat and other outlets emphasize the EPS miss and flat revenue growth, reinforcing the negative narrative among investors. Zacks | MarketBeat

About Cars.com

Cars.com operates as a leading online automotive marketplace in the United States, connecting car shoppers with new and used vehicle listings from dealerships and private sellers. The platform enables consumers to research makes and models, compare prices, read expert and user reviews, and access tools such as TrueCost to estimate ownership expenses over time. Through its website and mobile applications, Cars.com aims to simplify the car-buying process by aggregating detailed vehicle data, payment calculators, and dealership ratings into a single user-friendly experience.

On the dealer side, Cars.com provides a suite of marketing and lead-generation services designed to help automotive retailers reach potential buyers and manage their online presence.