Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $14.6667.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CARS. Zacks Research lowered Cars.com from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. B. Riley Financial downgraded shares of Cars.com from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, May 8th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $13.00 price target on shares of Cars.com in a research note on Monday, April 13th. BTIG Research raised their target price on Cars.com from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Cars.com from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th.

Cars.com Stock Up 0.3%

CARS stock opened at $11.45 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.33. Cars.com has a fifty-two week low of $7.40 and a fifty-two week high of $13.97. The stock has a market cap of $640.15 million, a PE ratio of 26.63 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.03). Cars.com had a return on equity of 18.12% and a net margin of 3.73%.The business had revenue of $180.22 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $180.16 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.37 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cars.com will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Cars.com

In other Cars.com news, CFO Sonia Jain sold 34,021 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.49, for a total transaction of $322,859.29. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 312,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,968,785.17. This represents a 9.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.36% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 38,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after acquiring an additional 1,119 shares during the period. iSAM Funds UK Ltd grew its position in Cars.com by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd now owns 12,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,367 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC raised its stake in Cars.com by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 43,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $526,000 after purchasing an additional 1,386 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 30.0% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 1,623 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury boosted its position in shares of Cars.com by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 36,904 shares of the company’s stock worth $419,000 after buying an additional 1,859 shares during the period. 89.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.