Copart (NASDAQ: CPRT) reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2026 results on 10 September, posting revenue growth alongside a sharp fall in profit.
Revenue for the three months to 31 July rose 2.4%, or $27.3m, to $1.2bn. Net income attributable to Copart dropped 17.4%, or $68.9m, to $327.4m.
Copart fourth quarter results show margin squeeze
Gross profit fell 5.5%, or $28.3m, to $481.4m, even as the top line grew. Diluted earnings per share came in at $0.35, down from $0.41 a year earlier, a 14.6% decline, according to the filing.
The prior-year quarter’s net income stood at $396.4m, the base for the latest decline, according to a preview from Alphastreet. Operating income fell 10.6% to $368.9m in the quarter, and for the full year it slipped 2.6% to $1.7bn, according to an earnings call transcript. Full-year gross margin came in at 44.7%, the same transcript showed.
Buybacks cut interest income
Copart repurchased $1.63bn of common stock during fiscal 2026, according to 24/7 Wall St, a programme that reduced the cash pile generating interest income and weighed on net income even as operating revenue grew. Annual operating cash flow fell 10.85% to $1.6bn for the year, the same outlet reported.
Full-year revenue, gross profit and net income were $4.7bn, $2.1bn and $1.5bn respectively. Full-year revenue growth was just 0.4%, reflecting a tough comparison with fiscal 2025, when storm-driven volume from Hurricanes Helene and Milton lifted vehicle throughput, according to the transcript. Full-year adjusted EPS was $1.55, down from $1.59 in fiscal 2025, Investing.com reported. Copart’s US operations generated $930.3m of the quarter’s revenue, against $222.1m from its international segment, the same outlet said.
A quarter-by-quarter look
The fourth-quarter net income figure sits below the three prior quarters of fiscal 2026. Copart’s first quarter net income was $403.7m, the second quarter $350.7m, and the third quarter $402.4m, according to SEC filings. Added to the fourth-quarter figure, those results are consistent with the roughly $1.5bn full-year net income Copart disclosed. The pattern shows profitability oscillating through the year rather than falling in a straight line, with the July quarter marking the softest of the four.
Shares reacted sharply to the release. Copart stock closed at $33.34, up 3.84% on the day, on volume nearly 2.8 times its 20-day average, according to consolidated exchange data. The stock had traded in a $30.77-$34.53 range over the prior 20 sessions before the print. Some of the after-hours strength followed a separate development: a reported all-cash acquisition of ACV Auctions, disclosed the same day, according to ChartMill, which noted the move came despite the earnings miss on a per-share basis.
Positioning ahead of the print
Short-side positioning had been building into the results. FINRA’s short-volume ratio for Copart climbed to 0.593 on 4 September, before easing to 0.541 on the day of the release, according to FINRA data. The ratio had been as low as 0.33 at the start of the month, suggesting shifting sentiment as the earnings date approached.
The results also landed against a steady but unremarkable macro backdrop. The 10-year US Treasury yield stood at 4.83% on 9 September, barely changed from 4.80% previously, according to FRED data. US unemployment held at 4.1% in August, unchanged from July, separate FRED figures showed, offering little in the way of an external explanation for the margin pressure Copart reported.
Copart’s finance team is expected to face questions on the ACV Auctions development and on the interest-income drag from buybacks when the company next reports, with investors watching whether the fourth-quarter margin compression proves temporary or persists into fiscal 2027.
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