Copart Inc
🔔 Watch stock
Assessment
Our Rating
A journalistic assessment by our editorial team at the time of the deep dive — it rates the company, not the entry point. Not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell.
The business works in principle, but one material question is open. As long as it stays open, our findings do not carry a quality verdict.
Why this colour
The substance is beyond doubt: a duopoly market position with owned land, a 36.5 percent operating margin, $1,230.8 million of free cash flow in fiscal 2025, $4.2 billion of liquidity and zero bank debt (April 30, 2026) — no trace of substance risk, hence no red. What blocks green is one essential open operating question: 81 percent of vehicles come from a single industry, the annual report itself warns of dependence on a few major sellers, and while revenue stagnates for the first time in more than a decade, key client Progressive is — per industry reports — shifting volume to the only real competitor. Add the abrupt CEO change effective July 31, 2026 and the ongoing DOJ investigation. Only when U.S. volume turns is the moat proven again rather than asserted. The decision is yours.
What the thesis turns on
Assessment: Opportunities & Risks
Copart is the test case for the halo effect: a demonstrably outstanding business — duopoly, 36.5 percent operating margin, $4.2 billion of liquidity with no bank debt — in its deepest drawdown in more than 20 years (down 56 percent from the high, as of July 24, 2026). The headwinds are real: the first year without revenue growth in over a decade, falling U.S. volume in the insurance cycle, the Progressive shift toward IAA, and an abrupt CEO change. Management has bet $1,632.5 million of buybacks in nine months on "cyclical"; whether it is right will start to show with the annual report in September 2026. Not investment advice.
Market position & business model
A duopoly with network effects and land ownership: about 4 million vehicles sold in twelve months (as of May 2026) versus about 2.5 million at sole major rival IAA, 1 million registered bidders in over 185 countries, 281 company facilities, real estate at a book value of $2,394.6 million (July 31, 2025). The structural tailwind — a record total-loss rate of roughly 23 percent in 2025 (CCC) — is intact.
Balance sheet & earnings power
Fortress balance sheet and world-class margins: $4,199.7 million of liquidity with zero bank and bond debt, a 91 percent equity ratio (April 30, 2026); a 36.5 percent operating margin and $1,230.8 million of free cash flow in fiscal 2025.
Growth
No growth for the first time in more than a decade: revenue down 0.2 percent to $3,513.8 million after nine months of fiscal 2026, U.S. service revenue down 2.1 percent; analyst consensus puts the full year at $4,644.8 million, just below the prior year (data as of July 26, 2026). Only international grows double-digit (up 14.1 percent in Q3).
Seller concentration & competition
81 percent of vehicles come from insurers (fiscal 2025), the annual report's first risk factor warns of dependence on a few major vehicle sellers — and industry reports (December 2025) estimate Progressive now routes about 90 percent of its total-loss volume to rival IAA. The insurance cycle (insured car years down 4 percent per management) adds pressure.
Leadership & capital allocation
CEO Jeff Liaw leaves effective July 31, 2026 in mid-crash — with a generous transition package; returning CEO Jay Adair (CEO 2010–2022, son-in-law of the founder) stands for continuity of the founding family, which holds over 10 percent of the shares. At the same time, after three zero years management repurchased $1,632.5 million of stock in nine months — but paused entirely in April 2026. A DOJ money-laundering investigation has been running since October 2023, outcome open.
Worth Noting
Hook: market observation of the crash — a string of new 52-week lows in July 2026 (most recently $26.81 on July 23, 2026), drawdown calculated from the adjusted price history since 2000 (fundamental data, as of July 24, 2026). No scanner hit claimed as the source.
The Progressive/IAA shift comes from industry reports (Transportation Today December 15, 2025, In Practise interview June 2025, RB Global earnings calls) — Copart names no customers in any filing; documented in the filings are only the U.S. volume decline and the seller-dependence risk factor. The figure "insured car years down 4 percent" quoted in the text comes from the earnings call transcript (May 2026), not from an SEC filing.
Data status: the 10-Q as of April 30, 2026 (filed May 29, 2026) fully reviewed as the most recent periodic report; all filings after it checked (8-K of June 29 and July 8, 2026, Form 4/144 in July 2026 — no 424B*, S-3, SC 13D, Form 25/15). Share count of 925,811,482 from the 10-Q cover page (May 27, 2026); metrics data as of July 26, 2026, prices through July 24, 2026. Analyses are evergreen; daily prices are not a buy argument.
Do not confuse: Copart (CPRT, online auctions for wrecked vehicles) is not CarParts.com (PRTS, an auto-parts retailer) and not rival IAA (part of RB Global, ticker RBA). The fiscal year ends July 31 — "fiscal 2026" essentially covers August 2025 through July 2026.
The rating light in this analysis judges the company, not the entry point.
Stock Watch
This analysis is as of August 26, 2026. Stock Watch will tell you what's changed at CPRT since then.
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Price history
Chart
Interactive price chart (TradingView).
52-week range: 27.20 $ to 46.60 $ · Last price: 29.70 $ (As of: September 17, 2026)
Key figures
Key figures at a glance
Every figure we hold for this stock, grouped by topic. The question mark next to a label explains what the number means.
Basics
Performance
Technical Indicators
Calculated from the price history · as of 09/18/2026
Valuation
Profitability
Balance Sheet & Safety
Growth
Dividend
This stock currently pays no dividend.
Quality & Screener
Highlighted are things our editorial team noticed: green = stands out as strong, red = deserves a closer look. No single metric is a verdict on its own — always read it in context.
Comparison
Industry comparison
The stock alongside the largest companies in the same group. The median row is the middle value of the companies shown above — not of the whole industry.
Industry: Specialty Business Services
| Company | Market cap ($B) | P/E | EV/EBITDA | Gross Margin % | EBIT Margin % | Sales Growth (Year) % | Perf. 1Y % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Copart Inc CPRT | 27.4 | 18.7 | 13.2 | 49.0 | 37.5 | 9.7 | -36.4 |
| Cintas Corporation CTAS | 79.2 | 42.9 | 26.6 | 50.7 | 23.2 | 7.8 | 0.0 |
| Global Payments Inc GPN | 23.4 | 31.5 | 10.9 | 64.0 | 12.5 | -23.8 | 1.4 |
| RB Global Inc. RBA | 15.7 | 39.2 | 13.7 | 45.8 | 18.0 | 9.0 | -27.9 |
| Aramark Holdings ARMK | 14.9 | 43.9 | 15.4 | 15.3 | 4.6 | 6.4 | 53.5 |
| UL Solutions Inc. ULS | 13.0 | 26.3 | 15.9 | 50.4 | 18.4 | 6.4 | -3.1 |
| Dolby Laboratories DLB | 5.4 | 24.2 | 13.8 | 87.6 | 29.1 | 5.9 | -17.7 |
| Amentum Holdings Inc. AMTM | 5.0 | 34.0 | 8.2 | 10.5 | 4.1 | 71.6 | -9.2 |
| Unifirst Corporation UNF | 4.7 | 36.2 | 16.6 | 36.7 | 4.2 | 0.2 | 55.3 |
| Median of companies shown | 14.9 | 34.0 | 13.8 | 49.0 | 18.0 | 6.4 | -3.1 |
Based on the most recently reported figures. Only stocks from the same trading venue are lined up, so the market caps are counted in one currency. Compare in a chart →
Fiscal years
Annual Figures
Fiscal years from the audited annual reports, oldest first. EBIT is the operating profit before interest and taxes; total assets are everything the company owns.
Revenue, operating income and net income per fiscal year $M
Revenue Operating income Net income
| Fiscal Year | Revenue ($M) | EBIT ($M) | Net Income ($M) | EPS ($) | Operating Cash Flow ($M) | Equity ($M) | Total Assets ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 1,448 | 461 | 394 | 0.42 | 492 | 1,098 | 1,983 |
| 2018 | 1,806 | 584 | 418 | 0.43 | 535 | 1,581 | 2,308 |
| 2019 | 2,042 | 716 | 592 | 0.62 | 647 | 1,778 | 2,548 |
| 2020 | 2,206 | 816 | 700 | 0.73 | 915 | 2,490 | 3,455 |
| 2021 | 2,693 | 1,136 | 937 | 0.97 | 991 | 3,529 | 4,562 |
| 2022 | 3,501 | 1,375 | 1,090 | 1.13 | 1,177 | 4,626 | 5,309 |
| 2023 | 3,870 | 1,487 | 1,238 | 1.28 | 1,364 | 5,987 | 6,738 |
| 2024 | 4,237 | 1,572 | 1,363 | 1.40 | 1,473 | 7,524 | 8,428 |
| 2025 | 4,647 | 1,697 | 1,552 | 1.59 | 1,800 | 9,187 | 10,091 |
| 2026 | 4,666 | 1,653 | 1,484 | 1.55 | 1,604 | 9,097 | 10,028 |
Quarters
Quarterly Figures
Each bar is one quarter, the last one is the most recent. Use the switch to step through the individual figures.
Revenue & Profit
Cash Flow
Balance Sheet
Margins
Per Share
Click the chart or tab into it, then use ← and → to step through the periods.
None of the selected stocks reports this metric. Pick another metric or switch between annual and quarterly.
· Total · per year
These companies report in different currencies — switch on “Indexed” or pick a margin for a fair comparison.
The figures could not be loaded right now.
Source: fundamental data
| Quarter | EPS (Earnings Per Share) | EPS YoY (%) | Sales ($M) | Sales YoY (%) | Net Margin (%) | OCF ($M) | FCF ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025: Q1 | 0.40 | 18.60 | 1,163 | 14.00 | 33.30 | 178 | 62 |
| 2025: Q2 | 0.42 | 6.20 | 1,212 | 7.50 | 33.60 | 701 | 573 |
| 2025: Q3 | 0.41 | 22.70 | 1,125 | 5.20 | 35.20 | 439 | 351 |
| 2025: Q4 | 0.41 | 11.40 | 1,155 | 0.70 | 35.00 | 535 | 427 |
| 2026: Q1 | 0.36 | -9.30 | 1,122 | -3.60 | 31.30 | 128 | 58 |
| 2026: Q2 | 0.42 | 0.30 | 1,237 | 2.10 | 32.50 | 584 | 503 |
What Do These Terms Mean?
- EPS (Earnings Per Share):
- Quarterly profit divided by the total share count — how much of the profit works out to a single share.
- YoY (Year over Year):
- Change versus the same quarter a year ago — this is how you compare without seasonal distortion (e.g. the holiday shopping season).
- Sales:
- All revenue for the quarter, before any costs are deducted — the top line of the income statement.
- Net Margin:
- What percentage of sales is left over as profit in the end. Negative means the company is posting a loss.
- OCF (Operating Cash Flow):
- The cash that actually flows into the till from the core business during the quarter — harder to dress up than book profit.
- FCF (Free Cash Flow):
- Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures — the money that's genuinely free to use, say for paying down debt, buybacks, or dividends.
Screening
Appears in These Scanners
This stock currently matches 7 of our scanner strategies — each hit links to the scanner.
Backtested Scanners
Growth
Quality & Balance Sheet
Momentum & Trend
Research
Only genuine hits from verified scanners count; pure ranking metrics (P/E, P/S, and similar, which just sort the whole universe) don't count as a hit. View all scanners
Outlook
Analysts & Price Target
Combined picture of the price targets and recommendations of every analyst covering the stock. Price targets are expectations for the next 12 months, not promises — and they often follow the price rather than predict it.
Distribution of Recommendations
Estimates by Fiscal Year
| Fiscal Year | EPS Estimate ($) | EPS Range ($) | Revenue Estimate ($M) | Expected Growth | Analysts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 07/31/2027 | 1.64 | 1.60 – 1.67 | 4,645 | -0.5% | 6 |
| 07/31/2028 | 1.82 | 1.75 – 1.92 | 5,170 | 10.8% | 7 |
Average of the analyst estimates for the coming fiscal years. The range shows how far the most optimistic and the most cautious estimate sit apart — the wider it is, the less certain the expectation.
Valuation
What is priced in?
Instead of guessing what the stock is worth, we turn the question around: what free cash flow growth has to happen for today’s market value to add up? The assumptions behind it can be moved.
Today’s market value implies roughly 8.8% growth in free cash flow per year over ten years (assumptions: discount rate 10.0%, terminal growth 2.5%).
| Free cash flow (last twelve months) | $1.27B |
|---|---|
| Market cap | $27.38B |
| Free cash flow in year ten | $2.94B |
| Terminal value as a share of market value | 56.5% |
For comparison: over the past five years free cash flow grew by 19.1% per year.
It shows which assumption is built into today’s price, not whether that assumption will hold. Every assumption can be changed with the sliders; the figures move with them.
A simplified model calculation — not a forecast and not a recommendation.
AI classification
AI Rating
Copart setzt eigene Machine-Learning-Produkte im Kerngeschäft ein (Co.ai zur Totalschaden-Bewertung, IntelliSeller zur Auktionssteuerung), weist aber keine eigenständige KI-Umsatzquelle aus — KI verstärkt den Auktionsservice, wird nicht als Produkt verkauft.
View the full file — quotes, sources, reviewed filings
„Salvage Estimation Services — We offer Co.ai, a proprietary suite of total loss determination and valuation tools that leverage machine learning and computer vision to assist sellers in the vehicle claims evaluation process by providing online salvage value estimates, which helps sellers determine whether to repair a vehicle or deem it a total loss."
Restwert-Schätzdienste — Wir bieten Co.ai an, eine proprietäre Suite von Werkzeugen zur Totalschaden-Feststellung und -Bewertung, die maschinelles Lernen und Computer Vision nutzt, um Einlieferer im Schadenbewertungsprozess mit Online-Restwertschätzungen zu unterstützen — das hilft Einlieferern zu entscheiden, ob ein Fahrzeug repariert oder als Totalschaden abgeschrieben wird.
10-K · 2025-09-26 · View SEC filing
„Using machine learning, IntelliSeller optimizes the utilization of our vehicle and sales data to determine when to establish minimum bid values and suggest when to re-auction a unit to ensure optimal returns while minimizing cycle time."
Mit maschinellem Lernen optimiert IntelliSeller die Nutzung unserer Fahrzeug- und Verkaufsdaten, um zu bestimmen, wann Mindestgebote gesetzt werden, und um vorzuschlagen, wann ein Fahrzeug erneut versteigert wird — für optimale Erlöse bei möglichst kurzer Durchlaufzeit.
10-K · 2025-09-26 · View SEC filing
„We continue to evaluate emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and generative artificial intelligence for incorporation into our business to augment our products and services."
Wir prüfen weiterhin neue Technologien wie künstliche Intelligenz, maschinelles Lernen und generative künstliche Intelligenz für die Einbindung in unser Geschäft, um unsere Produkte und Dienste zu erweitern.
10-Q · 2026-05-29 · View SEC filing
Filings Reviewed: 10-Q 2026-05-29 · 10-Q 2026-03-03 · 10-Q 2025-11-24 · 10-K 2025-09-26 · 10-Q 2025-06-03 · 10-K 2024-09-30
Rated on July 27, 2026 · How the Rating Is Built
Growth
Growth Score
Ten checks against the annual reports — each one passed counts a point.
- Revenue grows by more than 15% a year over three years 6.4%
- More than 10% revenue growth is expected for the coming year 4.0%
- Share count grows by less than 3% a year -0.3%
- Revenue growth plus cash-flow margin add up to at least 40 ("Rule of 40") 27.6%
- Gross margin at 40% or higher and without meaningful erosion 44.7%
- Goodwill from acquisitions does not grow faster than revenue 5.1%
- Net debt below twice EBITDA 4,401 m net cash
- Operating cash flow covers the profits of the last three years 477 m
- Return on capital at 15% or higher, or up versus two years ago 17.7%
- Insiders hold at least 10% or are net buyers 9.0%
A criterion without figures counts neither as passed nor as failed; a score is only produced from 7 judgeable criteria upwards. Source: fundamental data. All ten criteria in detail
Quality check
AAQS
10/10 Quality stockThe AAQS (AlleAktien Quality Score) checks 10 quality criteria on growth, profitability, and balance-sheet strength — per the methodology developed and published by AlleAktien, calculated by us from our own fundamental data. A stock counts as a quality stock from 9 out of 10 points. Where a company has a shorter listing history, we calculate over the fiscal years available (at least five).
- Sales growth 10Y > 5% 13.9%
- Exp. sales growth 3Y > 5% 5.3%
- EBIT growth 10Y > 5% 15.2%
- Exp. EBIT growth 3Y > 5% 8.3%
- Net debt < 4x EBIT -2.7x
- EBIT positive, 10Y straight 10
- Max. EBIT decline < 50% 2.6%
- Return on equity > 15% 17.4%
- ROCE > 15% 17.7%
- Expected return > 10% 13.3%
View stocks with the full AAQS score · Read the methodology at AlleAktien
Source: fundamental data
Insiders
Insider Transactions
Reportable transactions by officers and major shareholders from SEC Form 4 filings. "Other" includes things like stock grants and option exercises without a buy/sell character.
| Date | Person | Role | Type | Shares | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 28, 2026 | Liaw Jeffrey | Chief Executive Officer | Sell | 27,745 | 30.49 | 845,945 |
| Jul 28, 2026 | Liaw Jeffrey | Chief Executive Officer | Other | 43,166 | 8.70 | 375,544 |
| Jul 28, 2026 | Liaw Jeffrey | Chief Executive Officer | Other | 3,591 | 6.78 | 24,347 |
| Jul 15, 2026 | Liaw Jeffrey | Chief Executive Officer | Other | 812 | 8.70 | 7,064 |
| Jul 15, 2026 | Liaw Jeffrey | Chief Executive Officer | Other | 1,277 | 6.78 | 8,658 |
| Jul 13, 2026 | Englander Daniel J | Director | Other | 40,000 | 0.00 | – |
| Jul 13, 2026 | Englander Daniel J | Director | Sell | 80,000 | 27.55 | 2,204,000 |
The company
About the Company
Copart, Inc. bietet Online-Auktionen und Fahrzeugvermarktungsdienste in den USA, dem Vereinigten Königreich, Deutschland, Brasilien, Kanada, den Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten, Spanien, Finnland, Oman, der Republik Irland und Bahrain an.
- CEO Insider Trades (12 Mo.)
- selling own stock
- Employees
- 13,800
- Headquarters
- Dallas, TX
- Address
- 14185 Dallas Parkway, 75254 Dallas, United States
- Phone
- 972 391 5000
- Website
- copart.com
- IPO Date
- 03/16/1994
- ISIN
- US2172041061
- Stock Split
- 2:1 on 08/22/2023
- Stock Split
- 2:1 on 11/04/2022
- Stock Split
- 2:1 on 04/11/2017
Management
| Name | Title | Birth Year |
|---|---|---|
| Willis J. Johnson | Founder & Chairman | 1947 |
| A. Jayson Adair | Executive Chairman & CEO | 1969 |
| Leah C. Stearns | Senior VP & CFO | 1981 |
| Jane Pocock | President | 1971 |
| Steve Powers | Interim COO & Chief Business Development Officer | – |
| Gavin Renfrew | VP & Chief Accounting Officer | 1976 |
| Paul K. Kirkpatrick | Chief Legal Officer & Secretary | 1971 |
| Robert H. Vannuccini | Chief Sales Officer | 1966 |
| Adiel Avelar | Managing Director of Copart Brazil | – |
| Santiago Zamit | Managing Director of Copart Spain | – |
Executives per the latest required filings; titles kept in their original language. Source: fundamental data.
Filings
Company Filings (8-K)
An 8-K is the filing a US company must use to disclose material events immediately — takeovers, changes at the top, major contracts or payment troubles, for instance. The links open the original document at the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
- 09/10/2026 COPART INC (CPRT): Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement; Regulation FD Disclosure; Financial Statements and Exhibits SEC ↗
- 09/10/2026 COPART INC (CPRT): Results of Operations and Financial Condition; Financial Statements and Exhibits SEC ↗
- 08/18/2026 COPART INC (CPRT): Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers: Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers; Regulation FD Disclosure; Financial Statements and Exhibits SEC ↗
- 07/08/2026 COPART INC (CPRT): Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers: Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers; Regulation FD Disclosure; Financial Statements and Exhibits SEC ↗
Data as of: September 17, 2026 · Source: fundamental data & SEC filings (annual and quarterly reports, 10-K/10-Q)
Note: pure fact-based analysis, not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell. All figures without guarantee.