Copart, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPRT) reported adjusted earnings per share of 38 cents in third-quarter fiscal 2017 (ended Apr 30, 2017) and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 36 cents. The figure shows steep growth of 18.75% from 32 cents, recorded in the year-ago quarter.
Net income was $90.5 million, reflecting an increase of 21.3%,or $15.9 million, from the third quarter of 2016.
Copart’s revenues rose 7.7% to $373.9 million from the year-ago quarter but missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $386.1 million. Service revenues went up 9.5% to $332.35 million, while revenues from vehicle sales declined 5.1% to $41.52 million.
Gross margin improved 9.4% to $172.5 million in the reported quarter from $157.6 million, a year ago. Operating expenses also increased to $237.1 million from $225.3 million, recorded in the year-ago quarter.
Operating income shot up to $136.8 million from $121.9 million, reported the year-ago.
Financial Details
Copart had cash and cash equivalents of $189.6 million as of Apr 30, 2017 compared with $155.8 million as of Jul 31, 2016. Total debt and capital lease obligations declined to $550.8 million as of Apr 30, 2017 compared with $564.3 million as of Jul 31, 2016.
In the first nine months of fiscal 2017, Copart generated net cash flow of $347.8 million from operations, compared with $208.3 million, a year ago.
Price Performance
Copart outperformed the Zacks categorized Auction and Valuation Services industry in the last three months. While the stock gained 0.77%, the industry saw declined 0.60%. Share price gained from geographic expansion and repurchases.
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
Copart currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Better-ranked companies in the auto space include Sotheby’s (NYSE:BID) , Adient PLC (NYSE:ADNT) and BorgWarner Inc. (NYSE:BWA) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Expected long-term growth rate for Sotheby’s, Adient and BorgWarner are 15%, 10.64% and 8.69%, respectively.
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Copart, Inc. (CPRT): Free Stock Analysis Report
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