Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong Sell”

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research note released on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on CARS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $10.00 price target (down from $16.00) on shares of Cars.com in a report on Friday, February 27th. BTIG Research dropped their price objective on Cars.com from $17.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Cars.com in a research report on Friday, February 27th. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $13.50 price target on shares of Cars.com in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Cars.com from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.08.

Cars.com Stock Performance

Cars.com stock opened at $7.82 on Monday. Cars.com has a 12-month low of $7.68 and a 12-month high of $13.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.87. The company has a market capitalization of $458.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.43 and a beta of 1.50. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $11.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.69.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $183.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $183.44 million. Cars.com had a net margin of 2.77% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Cars.com will post 1.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Sonia Jain sold 11,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.45, for a total transaction of $153,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Cars.com

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CARS. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Cars.com by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 41,069 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,000 after buying an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Cars.com by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 38,273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 1,119 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Cars.com by 27.7% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,898 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 1,279 shares during the period. iSAM Funds UK Ltd lifted its holdings in Cars.com by 12.3% in the third quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd now owns 12,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $153,000 after acquiring an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Cars.com by 3.3% in the third quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 43,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $526,000 after acquiring an additional 1,386 shares during the period. 89.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cars.com

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.