Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) Released Earnings Last Week And Analysts Lifted Their Price Target To US$59.26

Shareholders of Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) will be pleased this week, given that the stock price is up 11% to US$62.70 following its latest first-quarter results. Results overall were respectable, with statutory earnings of US$0.37 per share roughly in line with what the analysts had forecast. Revenues of US$1.1b came in 4.3% ahead of analyst predictions. Earnings are an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance, look at what the analysts are forecasting for next year, and see if there's been a change in sentiment towards the company. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Copart after the latest results.

Check out our latest analysis for Copart

Following the latest results, Copart's ten analysts are now forecasting revenues of US$4.68b in 2025. This would be a reasonable 7.3% improvement in revenue compared to the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to rise 7.6% to US$1.56. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$4.58b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$1.55 in 2025. So it looks like there's been no major change in sentiment following the latest results, although the analysts have made a slight bump in to revenue forecasts.

The analysts increased their price target 5.8% to US$59.26, perhaps signalling that higher revenues are a strong leading indicator for Copart's valuation. That's not the only conclusion we can draw from this data however, as some investors also like to consider the spread in estimates when evaluating analyst price targets. The most optimistic Copart analyst has a price target of US$66.00 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at US$51.00. This is a very narrow spread of estimates, implying either that Copart is an easy company to value, or - more likely - the analysts are relying heavily on some key assumptions.

These estimates are interesting, but it can be useful to paint some more broad strokes when seeing how forecasts compare, both to the Copart's past performance and to peers in the same industry. We would highlight that Copart's revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 9.9% annualised growth rate until the end of 2025 being well below the historical 16% p.a. growth over the last five years. Juxtapose this against the other companies in the industry with analyst coverage, which are forecast to grow their revenues (in aggregate) 7.2% per year. Even after the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Copart is also expected to grow faster than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that there's been no major change in sentiment, with the analysts reconfirming that the business is performing in line with their previous earnings per share estimates. Happily, they also upgraded their revenue estimates, and are forecasting them to grow faster than the wider industry. We note an upgrade to the price target, suggesting that the analysts believes the intrinsic value of the business is likely to improve over time.

Following on from that line of thought, we think that the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. We have estimates - from multiple Copart analysts - going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here.

We also provide an overview of the Copart Board and CEO remuneration and length of tenure at the company, and whether insiders have been buying the stock, here.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.