Great Lakes Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in CarGurus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CARG)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of CarGurus, Inc. (NASDAQ:CARG) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 274,104 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,040 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.26% of CarGurus worth $10,016,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in CarGurus in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in CarGurus by 198.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 532 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings 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 period. Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in CarGurus by 82.7% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 424 shares during the period. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in CarGurus in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on CarGurus from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $46.00 target price on shares of CarGurus in a report on Monday, December 16th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on CarGurus from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of CarGurus in a report on Friday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CarGurus currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $38.41.

CarGurus Stock Performance

CarGurus stock opened at $31.18 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $36.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.26 billion, a PE ratio of 173.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.52. CarGurus, Inc. has a one year low of $21.18 and a one year high of $41.33.

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). CarGurus had a net margin of 2.34% and a return on equity of 27.14%. The business had revenue of $228.54 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $231.72 million. On average, analysts forecast that CarGurus, Inc. will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at CarGurus

In other CarGurus news, CEO Zachary Emerson Hallowell sold 4,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 120,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,295,424.78. This represents a 3.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Dafna Sarnoff sold 10,570 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.78, for a total value of $378,194.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 95,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,408,438.58. This trade represents a 9.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 59,388 shares of company stock valued at $2,204,338 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 17.20% of the company’s stock.

CarGurus Company Profile

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.