Capital International Investors Invests $195.64 Million in Copart, Inc. $CPRT

Capital International Investors bought a new stake in shares of Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 4,997,120 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $195,637,000. Capital International Investors owned 0.52% of Copart as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of CPRT. Norges Bank bought a new position in Copart during the 4th quarter valued at about $569,569,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Copart by 21.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 21,982,589 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $860,618,000 after acquiring an additional 3,918,610 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Copart by 298.2% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,887,359 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $217,243,000 after acquiring an additional 3,660,031 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Copart by 2,266.7% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,689,003 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $165,895,000 after acquiring an additional 3,533,133 shares during the period. Finally, Akre Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Copart by 253.1% during the 3rd quarter. Akre Capital Management LLC now owns 4,236,760 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $190,527,000 after acquiring an additional 3,036,760 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.78% of the company’s stock.

Copart Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ CPRT opened at $30.86 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $32.99 and its 200 day moving average is $36.45. Copart, Inc. has a 12 month low of $29.97 and a 12 month high of $50.91. The stock has a market cap of $28.57 billion, a PE ratio of 19.17 and a beta of 1.01.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The business services provider reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.02. Copart had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 33.48%.The company had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Copart, Inc. will post 1.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Copart news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 26,213 shares of Copart stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.18, for a total value of $869,747.34. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 79,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,638,871.76. The trade was a 24.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 9.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CPRT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird set a $48.00 target price on shares of Copart and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Copart from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Copart from $45.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $32.00 price target (down from $33.00) on shares of Copart in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $45.00 price target on shares of Copart in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $44.50.

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.