CarGurus (NASDAQ:CARG) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Shares of CarGurus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CARG) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $31.33, but opened at $29.90. CarGurus shares last traded at $29.78, with a volume of 433,535 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on CARG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut CarGurus from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $42.00 to $34.00 in a report on Thursday. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $46.00 target price on shares of CarGurus in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of CarGurus from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of CarGurus in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.75.

CarGurus Stock Down 5.6 %

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.31. The company has a market capitalization of $3.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 164.88, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.52.

CarGurus (NASDAQ:CARG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $228.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $231.72 million. CarGurus had a return on equity of 27.14% and a net margin of 2.34%. Analysts predict that CarGurus, Inc. will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Samuel Zales sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.36, for a total transaction of $767,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 400,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,344,959. This trade represents a 4.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Zachary Emerson Hallowell sold 4,580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.78, for a total value of $163,872.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 120,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,295,424.78. This represents a 3.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 61,888 shares of company stock worth $2,229,388. Insiders own 17.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CarGurus

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CARG. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of CarGurus by 198.5% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in CarGurus by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in CarGurus in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of CarGurus by 82.7% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 937 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in shares of CarGurus during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

About CarGurus

CarGurus, Inc operates an online automotive platform for buying and selling vehicles in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, U.S. Marketplace and Digital Wholesale. The company provides an online automotive marketplace where customers can search for new and used car listings from its dealers and sell their car to dealers and other consumers; and paid listings subscriptions for enhanced access to its marketplace that connects dealers to a large audience of informed and engaged consumers.