Copart Inc. stock gains on JPMorgan upgrade ahead of Q4 earnings

Copart Inc. stock is trading firmly ahead of its upcoming Q4 2026 earnings release, supported by a fresh JPMorgan upgrade and resilient profitability in fiscal 2026 so far.

Copart Inc. stock (ISIN US2172041061) is trading at 33.72 USD as of September 4, 2026, close to its recent highs, after a fresh analyst upgrade and ahead of the company’s Q4 2026 earnings release expected on September 10, 2026.

Analyst upgrade lifts sentiment

Investor interest in Copart Inc. has picked up after a new assessment by JPMorgan, which recently upgraded the shares to Overweight with a 40.00 USD price target for December 2027, signalling increased confidence in the company’s long-term growth prospects. According to a weekend analyst roundup on TipRanks dated September 5, 2026, the upgrade is tied to expectations that Copart can defend and rebuild market share in the auto salvage space under returning chief executive Jay Adair.

The upgrade comes just days before Copart’s scheduled Q4 2026 earnings release. Market data compiled by MarketBeat’s earnings preview shows that analysts currently expect Q4 2026 revenue of 1.14 billion USD and consensus earnings per share of 0.38 USD, providing a benchmark for investors watching the upcoming report on September 10, 2026.

Recent results show resilient profitability

Beyond the upcoming quarter, Copart Inc.’s latest reported figures for fiscal 2026 so far point to resilient profitability despite a mixed revenue backdrop. For the quarter ended April 30, 2026 (Q3 2026), Copart generated revenue of 1.20 billion USD, up 2.1 percent year on year, while operating income rose 2.8 percent to 464.3 million USD, underlining solid cost control and margin discipline. According to a summary of Copart’s recent filings compiled by StockTitan’s Copart filings overview, gross profit in Q3 2026 increased 3.7 percent year on year to 572.6 million USD, outpacing the revenue growth rate.

In the same Q3 2026 period, net income attributable to Copart Inc. came in at 402.4 million USD, which was 1.0 percent lower than a year earlier. However, diluted earnings per share still edged up from 0.42 USD to 0.43 USD, a 2.4 percent increase, helped by a lower share count. For the first nine months of fiscal 2026, Copart’s revenue reached 3.50 billion USD, essentially flat compared with the previous year, while net income attributable to the company rose to 1.16 billion USD and diluted EPS for the period increased to 1.20 USD, showing that profitability is rising even as top-line growth remains modest.

Earlier in the fiscal year, Copart’s Q2 2026 results for the quarter ended January 31, 2026 painted a softer picture, with revenue of 1.12 billion USD down 3.6 percent year on year and gross profit down 6.2 percent to 492.8 million USD. Net income attributable to Copart in that quarter declined 9.5 percent to 350.7 million USD, while diluted EPS slipped from 0.40 USD to 0.36 USD, a decrease of 10.0 percent. For the first six months of fiscal 2026, revenue of 2.28 billion USD was 1.4 percent lower than a year earlier, but net income attributable to Copart edged up 0.7 percent to 754.4 million USD and diluted EPS held steady at 0.77 USD, supported by strong operating cash flow of 662.8 million USD in that period as highlighted in the same StockTitan overview.

Market reaction and valuation context

On the market side, Copart Inc. stock was quoted at 33.72 USD at the close on September 4, 2026, representing a 0.42 percent gain on the day, according to the overview of market data where Copart is listed with a market capitalization of 31.218 billion USD in the specialty business services industry. This level keeps the shares supported in the mid-30 USD range, leaving headroom versus JPMorgan’s 40.00 USD price target mentioned in the TipRanks note and suggesting that the market is beginning to price in future earnings growth but has not fully reflected the more optimistic analyst stance.

For investors, the key comparison heading into Q4 2026 is the contrast between the strong Q3 2026 metrics and the weaker Q2 2026 performance. Revenue moved from a 3.6 percent year-on-year decline in Q2 2026 to a 2.1 percent increase in Q3 2026, while diluted EPS swung from a 10.0 percent drop in Q2 2026 to a 2.4 percent rise in Q3 2026. This progression underscores how the company’s profitability trajectory has improved over the course of fiscal 2026, and the upcoming Q4 2026 report will show whether this positive trend continues or whether the Q3 bounce was more of a one-off stabilization.

Vehicle auctions underpin the business model

Copart Inc. operates a global online vehicle auction platform that connects insurance companies, rental fleets, finance firms and other sellers with buyers looking for used, damaged or salvage vehicles. One concrete example of this business model in action is a listing for a 2016 Ford Explorer XLT with a clean title and run-and-drive status offered for auction at the Los Angeles yard with a sale date of September 8, 2026, as shown on Copart’s own marketplace. The listing highlights how Copart processes a wide range of vehicles across different conditions and regions, with detailed information about vehicle status and title to help buyers assess value and risk in each auction.

Such auctions generate transaction fees and related service revenues for Copart, and the volume and mix of vehicles on the platform feed directly into the revenue and margin figures seen in the company’s quarterly results. For investors, understanding this link between daily auction activity and reported revenue helps to put numbers like the 1.20 billion USD Q3 2026 revenue and the 572.6 million USD Q3 2026 gross profit into context: they are the aggregated outcome of thousands of individual auction transactions carried out across Copart’s yards and online platform over the quarter.

Copart Inc. stock ahead of earnings

Looking at the stock in the run-up to the Q4 2026 release, the closing price of 33.72 USD on September 4, 2026 and market capitalization of 31.218 billion USD frame Copart Inc. as a sizable player within the specialty business services segment of the market. With consensus expecting Q4 2026 revenue of 1.14 billion USD and EPS of 0.38 USD, the upcoming earnings report will be watched for confirmation that the improvement from Q2 2026 to Q3 2026 is continuing and that the analyst upgrade narrative of renewed growth momentum is substantiated in the numbers.

Copart Inc. stock at a glance

• Company: Copart Inc.
• ISIN: US2172041061
• Ticker: CPRT
• Trading venue: NASDAQ
• Price (as of September 4, 2026, 16:00): 33.72 USD
• Market capitalization: 31.218 billion USD (as of September 4, 2026)
• Sector / Industry: Specialty business services
• Index membership: S&P 500