Short Interest in Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS) Drops By 7.8%

Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,540,000 shares, a decline of 7.8% from the August 31st total of 1,670,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 572,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days. Currently, 2.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Cars.com Price Performance

Shares of CARS traded down $0.16 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $16.60. The company had a trading volume of 631,315 shares, compared to its average volume of 474,536. The company’s 50-day moving average is $17.94 and its 200-day moving average is $18.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.53. The company has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.68 and a beta of 2.11. Cars.com has a twelve month low of $14.82 and a twelve month high of $21.24.

Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.06). Cars.com had a return on equity of 6.70% and a net margin of 3.51%. The company had revenue of $178.89 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $181.51 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Cars.com will post 1.22 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on CARS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Cars.com from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $25.00 to $19.00 in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Cars.com in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. B. Riley decreased their price target on shares of Cars.com from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Cars.com from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th.

Insider Transactions at Cars.com

In other Cars.com news, CEO Thomas Alex Vetter sold 17,674 shares of Cars.com stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.23, for a total value of $339,871.02. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 598,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,517,500.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 2.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cars.com

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CARS. Boston Partners grew its stake in Cars.com by 25.0% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,153,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,972,000 after buying an additional 430,654 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cars.com by 94.2% in the 1st quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 425,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,313,000 after acquiring an additional 206,415 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Cars.com by 50.3% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 615,408 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,573,000 after acquiring an additional 205,871 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Cars.com by 19.4% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,078,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,252,000 after purchasing an additional 175,094 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in Cars.com in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,843,000. 89.15% of the stock is owned by 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.