Cars.com’s (CARS) Outperform Rating Reiterated at Barrington Research

Barrington Research reiterated their outperform rating on shares of Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $25.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on CARS. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Cars.com from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $10.00 target price (down from $16.00) on shares of Cars.com in a research note on Friday. BTIG Research lowered their price target on shares of Cars.com from $17.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Cars.com in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded 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.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $16.08.

Cars.com Trading Down 5.6%

NYSE:CARS opened at $8.58 on Friday. Cars.com has a 12 month low of $8.29 and a 12 month high of $13.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $11.65 and its 200 day moving average is $11.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $502.84 million, a PE ratio of 26.80 and a beta of 1.50.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.12). Cars.com had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 2.77%.The firm had revenue of $183.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $183.44 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.49 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Cars.com will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Matthew B. Crawford sold 27,358 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.03, for a total transaction of $329,116.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 71,103 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $855,369.09. The trade was a 27.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Sonia Jain sold 11,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.45, for a total transaction of $153,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 243,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,276,984.90. This trade represents a 4.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 2.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cars.com

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

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

Cars.com Company Profile

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.