Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) Earns “Outperform” Rating from Barrington Research

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by equities researchers at Barrington Research in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $25.00 price target on the stock. Barrington Research’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 173.52% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Cars.com in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. BTIG Research cut their price target on shares of Cars.com from $17.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cars.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $10.00 price objective (down from $16.00) on shares of Cars.com in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Cars.com from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $16.08.

Cars.com Trading Down 14.9%

NYSE CARS opened at $9.14 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a current ratio of 1.82. Cars.com has a one year low of $8.86 and a one year high of $14.94. The firm has a market cap of $546.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.87 and a beta of 1.46. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $11.95.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.12). Cars.com had a return on equity of 18.32% and a net margin of 4.16%.The business had revenue of $183.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $183.44 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. Cars.com’s revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Cars.com will post 1.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Sonia Jain sold 11,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.45, for a total transaction of $153,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 243,642 shares in the company, valued at $3,276,984.90. This trade represents a 4.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Matthew B. Crawford sold 27,358 shares of Cars.com stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.03, for a total value of $329,116.74. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 71,103 shares in the company, valued at approximately $855,369.09. The trade was a 27.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 2.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 119.9% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 2,305 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cars.com by 27.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,898 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 1,279 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 30.0% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 1,623 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in Cars.com by 436.0% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 6,475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Cars.com in the third quarter worth approximately $100,000. 89.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cars.com News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Cars.com this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recorded full-year revenue of $723M, generated $152M of operating cash flow, repurchased 7.1M shares for $86M (retiring ~9% of shares outstanding), and expanded dealer customers to ~19,544 — indicating strong cash generation and shareholder-friendly capital allocation. Cars.com Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management outlined a marketplace integration strategy and is advancing AI-powered solutions while expecting dealer revenue growth in 2026 — strategic initiatives that could improve monetization and product differentiation over time. Cars.com outlines marketplace integration and expects 2026 dealer revenue growth while advancing AI-powered solutions
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue for Q4 was $183.9M, essentially in line with consensus and up 1.9% year-over-year — the top line showed modest growth but not a clear reacceleration. Cars.com (CARS) Reports Q4 Earnings: What Key Metrics Have to Say
• Neutral Sentiment: For additional management commentary and color on execution, see the full earnings call transcript. Cars.com Inc. (CARS) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: EPS missed: reported $0.44 vs. consensus $0.56, and fell from $0.49 a year ago — an earnings shortfall that pressures near-term sentiment. Cars.com (CARS) Misses Q4 Earnings Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Forward revenue guidance came in below consensus: Q1 2026 revenue $179.0M–$180.8M vs. $183.4M expected, and FY 2026 revenue $723.2M–$737.7M vs. $735.1M consensus — plus limited EPS guidance, which increases short-term uncertainty. Cars.com: Q4 Earnings Snapshot / Press Release & Slides

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.