Bank of New York Mellon Corp Reduces Stake in Copart, Inc. $CPRT

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lessened its holdings in Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 18,063,979 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 796,250 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Copart were worth $812,337,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CPRT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Copart by 2.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 106,408,868 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,221,483,000 after acquiring an additional 2,144,946 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Copart by 3.3% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,406,503 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,786,467,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167,265 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Copart by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,462,076 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $999,305,000 after purchasing an additional 656,333 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Copart during the 2nd quarter valued at about $549,448,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Copart by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,160,298 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $498,566,000 after buying an additional 670,061 shares during the period. 85.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Copart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CPRT opened at $40.62 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $39.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.43. Copart, Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.41 and a 1 year high of $63.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.77 and a beta of 1.10.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The business services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.18 billion. Copart had a net margin of 34.24% and a return on equity of 17.78%. The firm’s revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.37 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Copart, Inc. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Copart

In related news, Director Thomas N. Tryforos sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.07, for a total transaction of $3,907,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 25,137 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.17, for a total transaction of $1,009,753.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 55,970 shares in the company, valued at $2,248,314.90. This represents a 30.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 9.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CPRT has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Copart from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Copart in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $33.00 price target (up from $32.00) on shares of Copart in a report on Friday, November 21st. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Copart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Copart from $55.00 to $52.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.60.

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.