Needham & Company LLC Lowers CarGurus (NASDAQ:CARG) Price Target to $37.00

CarGurus (NASDAQ:CARG) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC from $44.00 to $37.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 27.81% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. DA Davidson set a $37.50 target price on CarGurus in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Zacks Research lowered shares of CarGurus from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of CarGurus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of CarGurus from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of CarGurus in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.23.

CarGurus Trading Down 1.8%

CARG opened at $28.95 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.35. CarGurus has a 12 month low of $24.65 and a 12 month high of $40.37. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.22.

CarGurus (NASDAQ:CARG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $238.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $234.57 million. CarGurus had a return on equity of 41.31% and a net margin of 16.41%.The company’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that CarGurus will post 1.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jason Trevisan sold 20,000 shares of CarGurus stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.00, for a total transaction of $740,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 655,483 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,252,871. This trade represents a 2.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ismail Elshareef sold 1,645 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.21, for a total value of $52,985.45. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 91,822 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,957,586.62. This trade represents a 1.76% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 49,003 shares of company stock valued at $1,858,494 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 16.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CarGurus

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in CarGurus during the 4th quarter valued at $334,000. Truist Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of CarGurus in the fourth quarter valued at about $268,000. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of CarGurus by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 16,375 shares of the company’s stock worth $628,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CarGurus during the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CarGurus during the 4th quarter worth about $458,000. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

CarGurus Company Profile

CarGurus, Inc operates an online automotive marketplace designed to connect buyers and sellers of new and used vehicles. Through its proprietary search engine and data-driven pricing tools, the platform enables consumers to compare listings, assess fair market values and locate local dealers offering competitive deals. CarGurus also provides detailed vehicle history reports, dealer reviews and financing options to streamline the car-shopping process for both private parties and franchised dealerships.

The company’s core product offerings include Instant Market Value (IMV), which leverages pricing algorithms to help buyers identify over- or under-priced vehicles, as well as dealer subscription services that grant automotive retailers access to lead generation tools, targeted advertising and dynamic pricing insights.