JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) to Neutral

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday, Marketbeat reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has $19.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $25.00.

Separately, Barrington Research reissued an outperform rating and set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Cars.com in a report on Monday, August 5th.

Cars.com Price Performance

Shares of CARS traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $16.75. 117,817 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 431,562. The business has a 50-day moving average of $19.42 and a 200 day moving average of $18.33. Cars.com has a one year low of $14.82 and a one year high of $21.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.72 and a beta of 2.21.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $180.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $179.81 million. Cars.com had a return on equity of 22.28% and a net margin of 15.34%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Cars.com will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cars.com news, insider Angelique Strong Marks sold 2,846 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.50, for a total transaction of $52,651.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 118,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,199,964.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Thomas Alex Vetter sold 25,373 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total value of $482,087.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 634,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,051,206. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Angelique Strong Marks sold 2,846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.50, for a total value of $52,651.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 118,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,199,964.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 73,559 shares of company stock worth $1,434,619. 2.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cars.com

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Cars.com by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 23,556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $447,000 after purchasing an additional 3,400 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in Cars.com during the fourth quarter worth approximately $584,000. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC increased its stake in Cars.com by 94.6% during the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 252,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,788,000 after acquiring an additional 122,665 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Cars.com by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 36,596 shares of the company’s stock valued at $694,000 after acquiring an additional 955 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 60.9% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 44,154 shares of the company’s stock worth $838,000 after purchasing an additional 16,707 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.15% of the company’s stock.

Cars.com Company Profile

Cars.com Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a digital automotive marketplace that connects local car dealers to consumers in the United States. The company offers a suite of digital solutions that creates connections between individuals researching cars or looking to purchase a car with car dealerships and automotive original equipment manufacturers.