CoreCivic, Inc. (NYSE:CXW) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

CoreCivic, Inc. (NYSE:CXW) was the target of a large growth in short interest in August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 15,424,304 shares, a growth of 331.5% from the July 30th total of 3,574,436 shares. Approximately 15.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,783,511 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 8.6 days.

CoreCivic Stock Up 1.1%

CXW stock traded up $0.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $34.17. 248,382 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,210,392. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. CoreCivic has a 1-year low of $15.73 and a 1-year high of $34.86. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.33. The firm has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.34 and a beta of 0.58.

CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.04. CoreCivic had a net margin of 5.15% and a return on equity of 9.22%. The company had revenue of $684.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $618.63 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 27.3% compared to the same quarter last year. CoreCivic has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.610-2.700 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that CoreCivic will post 2.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CoreCivic declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, August 10th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the real estate investment trust to reacquire up to 15.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CoreCivic news, EVP Lucibeth Mayberry sold 120,000 shares of CoreCivic stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.29, for a total value of $3,994,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 149,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,971,162.41. The trade was a 44.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO David Garfinkle sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.76, for a total value of $1,688,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 343,353 shares in the company, valued at $11,591,597.28. The trade was a 12.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 439,287 shares of company stock worth $14,734,193 over the last ninety days. 1.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CXW. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in CoreCivic by 49.2% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 59,523 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,207,000 after buying an additional 19,630 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in CoreCivic by 69.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 28,120 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $571,000 after acquiring an additional 11,557 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of CoreCivic by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 64,828 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,315,000 after acquiring an additional 2,828 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of CoreCivic by 3,884.2% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 18,885 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 18,411 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of CoreCivic by 2.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 220,467 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,473,000 after purchasing an additional 4,977 shares during the last quarter. 85.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Northland Securities set a $40.00 price target on CoreCivic in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Benchmark increased their price objective on shares of CoreCivic from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. JonesTrading reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of CoreCivic in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen raised CoreCivic from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, UBS Group set a $35.00 price objective on CoreCivic in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, CoreCivic has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $37.00.

About CoreCivic

CoreCivic, Inc (NYSE: CXW) is a real estate investment trust specializing in the ownership, management and operation of private correctional and detention facilities in the United States. The company enters into contracts with federal, state and local government agencies to house inmates and detainees in facilities that it owns or operates on a concession basis. In addition to traditional prison operations, CoreCivic provides specialized services such as community-based reentry programs, electronic monitoring and rehabilitation initiatives aimed at reducing recidivism.

CoreCivic’s portfolio encompasses a mix of adult correctional facilities, immigration detention centers, residential reentry centers and other community-based programs.