Beddow Capital Management Inc. Acquires Shares of 65,485 Copart, Inc. $CPRT

Beddow Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 65,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,945,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CPRT. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Copart by 92.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,215 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $816,000 after buying an additional 6,817 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Copart by 365.8% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,118 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 878 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Copart by 8.9% in the 2nd quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 315,245 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $15,429,000 after acquiring an additional 25,681 shares in the last quarter. Andra AP fonden raised its position in Copart by 642.4% during the second quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 171,500 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,416,000 after acquiring an additional 148,400 shares during the period. Finally, Sienna Gestion lifted its holdings in Copart by 10.1% during the second quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 153,141 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,861,000 after purchasing an additional 13,994 shares in the last quarter. 85.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on CPRT. Robert W. Baird set a $48.00 target price on shares of Copart and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Zacks Research cut Copart from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $32.00 target price (down from $33.00) on shares of Copart in a report on Monday, February 23rd. 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 research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, CJS Securities upgraded Copart to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $44.40.

Copart Price Performance

Shares of CPRT stock opened at $37.97 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $36.58 billion, a PE ratio of 23.73 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $39.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.98. Copart, Inc. has a 12 month low of $33.81 and a 12 month high of $63.85.

Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The business services provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.15 billion. Copart had a net margin of 33.76% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.40 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Copart, Inc. will post 1.57 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Jeffrey Liaw sold 25,137 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.17, for a total value 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 approximately $2,248,314.90. This represents a 30.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 9.60% of the company’s stock.

About Copart

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.