CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

CoreCivic, Inc. (NYSE:CXW) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $27.98 and last traded at $27.7740, with a volume of 1245569 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.77.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on CXW. Weiss Ratings lowered CoreCivic from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Benchmark started coverage on CoreCivic in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered CoreCivic from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.00.

CoreCivic Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.49 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 2.44 and a quick ratio of 2.44. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $21.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.00.

CoreCivic (NYSE:CXW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $614.73 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $604.48 million. CoreCivic had a net margin of 5.53% and a return on equity of 9.29%. CoreCivic’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. CoreCivic has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.580-2.680 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that CoreCivic, Inc. will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CoreCivic

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of CoreCivic by 533.9% during the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,458 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,228 shares during the period. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in CoreCivic in the fourth quarter worth about $57,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in CoreCivic by 33.0% in the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,829 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in CoreCivic by 320.7% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,340 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 2,546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in CoreCivic during the 4th quarter worth about $71,000. 85.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About CoreCivic

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.