Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume

Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 756,542 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 109% from the previous session’s volume of 362,149 shares.The stock last traded at $16.80 and had previously closed at $16.70.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Cars.com in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.00.

Cars.com Stock Up 0.8 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of 9.97 and a beta of 2.05. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $17.33 and its 200-day moving average is $17.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $179.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.40 million. Cars.com had a return on equity of 25.78% and a net margin of 17.19%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.15 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Cars.com Inc. will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cars.com news, insider Douglas Neal Miller sold 1,823 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.50, for a total value of $33,725.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 181,596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,359,526. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Douglas Neal Miller sold 1,823 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.50, for a total transaction of $33,725.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 181,596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,359,526. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Thomas Alex Vetter sold 14,999 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total transaction of $284,981.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 553,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,523,834. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 34,488 shares of company stock worth $654,361. 1.59% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CARS. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Cars.com by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,134,768 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,292,000 after acquiring an additional 89,194 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Cars.com by 118.5% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its stake in Cars.com by 599.5% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 782,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,051,000 after acquiring an additional 670,982 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in Cars.com by 138.9% in the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 51,454 shares of the company’s stock worth $868,000 after acquiring an additional 29,913 shares during the period. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its stake in Cars.com by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 86,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,639,000 after acquiring an additional 9,261 shares during the period. 89.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.