National Pension Service Boosts Stock Position in Copart, Inc. $CPRT

National Pension Service grew its stake in shares of Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) by 16.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,427,163 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 201,371 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in Copart were worth $55,873,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Copart by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 371,603 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,711,000 after buying an additional 45,346 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Copart by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 798,087 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,353,000 after buying an additional 31,658 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Copart by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 40,175,058 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,806,674,000 after buying an additional 1,236,101 shares in the last quarter. Yacktman Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Copart during the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,382,000. Finally, Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. lifted its position in shares of Copart by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. now owns 3,181,919 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $143,091,000 after buying an additional 212,520 shares in the last quarter. 85.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Copart Trading Down 1.5%

NASDAQ CPRT opened at $32.77 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $33.22 and its 200 day moving average is $36.91. Copart, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.20 and a 12 month high of $52.23. The stock has a market cap of $31.57 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35 and a beta of 1.02.

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.

Insider Transactions at Copart

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 currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Copart Company 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.