CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) Stock Jumps 5.5% – Time to Buy?

CoreCivic, Inc. (NYSE:CXW) shares rose 5.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The company traded as high as $31.62 and last traded at $31.4590. Approximately 324,316 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 1,418,807 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.83.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CXW. Weiss Ratings lowered CoreCivic from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. JonesTrading reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 price target on shares of CoreCivic in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Noble Financial restated an “outperform” rating on shares of CoreCivic in a report on Monday, August 10th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of CoreCivic in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of CoreCivic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $39.40.

CoreCivic Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $32.21 and a 200-day moving average of $26.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a quick ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $15.14 by ($14.65). CoreCivic had a net margin of 54.60% and a return on equity of 9.27%. The firm had revenue of $744.09 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $697.55 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.48 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 28.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that CoreCivic, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

CoreCivic declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, August 10th that permits the company to repurchase $500 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the real estate investment trust to buy up to 15.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO David Garfinkle sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.96, for a total value of $1,698,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 293,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,962,267.88. This trade represents a 14.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Anthony Grande sold 12,564 shares of CoreCivic stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.85, for a total value of $425,291.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 144,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,900,870.70. The trade was a 7.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 297,595 shares of company stock worth $10,041,287 in the last 90 days. 1.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of CoreCivic

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ieq Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of CoreCivic by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 8,431 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $272,000 after buying an additional 1,484 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board acquired a new position in CoreCivic in the 3rd quarter valued at about $12,081,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in CoreCivic by 338.9% in the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,164 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 1,671 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of CoreCivic by 21.0% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 64,880 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,092,000 after acquiring an additional 11,238 shares during the period. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its holdings in shares of CoreCivic by 52.5% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 22,079 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $712,000 after acquiring an additional 7,604 shares during the period. 85.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CoreCivic Company Profile

CoreCivic, Inc. is a U.S. corrections and government-services company that operates correctional and detention facilities under contracts with federal, state and local government agencies. Its services include facility management and related support for people in custody. The company also provides residential reentry services, including transitional housing and programs intended to help people return to their communities. Through its real estate business, CoreCivic owns and develops correctional and detention properties that government agencies may lease.