CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) Receives “Buy” Rating from Jones Trading

CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by analysts at Jones Trading in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $30.00 price target on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Jones Trading’s price target suggests a potential upside of 68.40% from the stock’s previous close.

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of CoreCivic from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, CoreCivic currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.00.

CoreCivic Trading Down 3.7%

NYSE:CXW opened at $17.82 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.50 and a beta of 0.71. CoreCivic has a 1-year low of $15.95 and a 1-year high of $23.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.09. CoreCivic had a return on equity of 8.07% and a net margin of 5.27%.The firm had revenue of $603.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $585.12 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.39 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that CoreCivic will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current year.

CoreCivic declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, November 10th that allows the company to repurchase $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the real estate investment trust to reacquire up to 10.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of CoreCivic by 33.0% during the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,829 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the period. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp increased its stake in shares of CoreCivic by 0.6% in the second quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 121,147 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,553,000 after acquiring an additional 709 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of CoreCivic by 80.1% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,186 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 972 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of CoreCivic by 10.4% during the second quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 10,595 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 1,002 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey boosted its position in CoreCivic by 4.8% during the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 24,679 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $520,000 after purchasing an additional 1,121 shares during the last quarter. 85.13% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CoreCivic Company Profile

CoreCivic, Inc (NYSE: CXW) is a real estate investment trust specializing in the ownership, management and operation of private correctional and detention facilities in the United States. The company enters into contracts with federal, state and local government agencies to house inmates and detainees in facilities that it owns or operates on a concession basis. In addition to traditional prison operations, CoreCivic provides specialized services such as community-based reentry programs, electronic monitoring and rehabilitation initiatives aimed at reducing recidivism.

CoreCivic’s portfolio encompasses a mix of adult correctional facilities, immigration detention centers, residential reentry centers and other community-based programs.