Copart, Inc. provides online auction and a wide range of remarketing services to process and sell salvage and clean title vehicles. This is done mainly over the Internet, through its Virtual Bidding Third Generation (VB3) Internet auction-style sales technology. Sellers are primarily insurance companies, banks and financial institutions, charities, car dealerships, fleet operators, and vehicle rental companies. Buyers include licensed vehicle dismantlers, rebuilders, repair licensees, used vehicle dealers and exporters, along with the general public. Copart's services include online supplier access, salvage estimation services, end-of-life vehicle processing, virtual insured exchange, transportation services, vehicle inspection stations, on-demand reporting, DMV processing and flexible vehicle processing programs, among others.

• Increasing Revenue and Earnings: Copart has consistently increased its revenue and earnings per share over the past decade. This demonstrates a robust business model that's resilient and capable of sustained growth. The increasing complexity and cost of repairing vehicles lead to more "total loss" declarations by insurance companies, which provides a steady supply of vehicles for Copart's auctions.
  
  
• Low Long-Term Debt: Copart has historically maintained a low level of long-term debt, which is a sign of financial strength. A low debt-to-equity ratio means the company isn't highly leveraged, giving it flexibility for investments and protecting it from rising interest rates.
  
  
• High ROE and Net Margins: The company's Return on Equity (ROE) and net profit margins are consistently high. This indicates that Copart is very efficient at turning a profit from its assets and that its business model is highly profitable. Its online-only, asset-light approach allows it to maintain strong margins. The high margins are a significant competitive moat.
  
  
• High P/E Ratio: The P/E ratio is indeed often high, typically above 30x. This is because the market has high expectations for the company's future growth. Investors are willing to pay a premium for a stock with such a strong track record of growth and profitability. This high valuation reflects market confidence in Copart's ability to continue expanding.
  
  

• Extending the Core Business: The core business is still online vehicle auctions, but services like CashForCars.com and Copart Recycling allow the company to capture more value from each vehicle. Instead of just auctioning off a total loss vehicle, Copart can now buy it directly from a consumer, process it, and sell it for parts through its recycling service. This creates multiple revenue opportunities from a single piece of inventory.
  
  
• Reducing Reliance on a Single Segment: By expanding into services like direct consumer sales and parts recycling, Copart reduces its reliance on the insurance auction business alone. This diversification makes the company more resilient to potential changes in the insurance or used car markets.
  
  
• Strengthening the Moat: These additional services strengthen the company's competitive advantage. A rival focused only on auctions can't offer the same suite of services to a seller. This makes Copart a more attractive, all-in-one partner for insurance companies, car rental fleets, and financial institutions.
  

• Book Value Per Share (BV/share): This metric is calculated by dividing a company's total equity by the number of outstanding shares. It represents the total value of a company's assets that can be claimed by its shareholders. According to recent data from sources like AlphaQuery, Copart's book value per share is approximately $9.08 as of April 30, 2025. Another source, Markets Insider, reports a book value per share of $7.82 as of a more recent date. These figures highlight a key challenge: financial data can vary slightly depending on the source and the specific date of the report.
  
  
• Tangible Assets Per Share: Tangible assets are physical assets like property, plant, and equipment, as well as cash and inventory. Intangible assets (like goodwill from acquisitions) are excluded from this calculation. It's a more conservative measure than book value per share. While a specific "tangible assets per share" figure isn't always readily available, financial reports provide the necessary components. For example, as of its fiscal year ending July 31, 2024, Copart had tangible shareholders' equity of approximately $6.94 billion. Given its number of outstanding shares, this translates to roughly $7.21 per share.
  
  
• Cash and Equivalents Per Share: A company's cash on hand is a direct measure of its financial liquidity and strength. Copart is known for its strong cash position. According to financial reports, Copart's cash and cash equivalents were a significant amount, and a per-share calculation shows a net cash position of approximately $4.85 per share as of a recent report.
  
  

• Value vs. Price: The numbers you've noted—a high P/E ratio and low book value per share relative to the stock price—point to the fact that Copart is a growth stock, not a value stock.
  
  
• Asset-Light Model: Copart's business is fundamentally asset-light. While it owns and operates many physical yards, the real value isn't just in the land or buildings. The value is in its proprietary technology, its brand reputation, its network of global buyers, and its efficient operations. These are intangible assets that are not fully captured in book value or tangible assets.
  
  
• High P/B Ratio: The high price-to-book (P/B) ratio for Copart is a clear indication that the market is assigning a significant value to these intangible assets and future earnings potential, well beyond the company's physical assets. A P/B ratio of around 6.21, as you've noted, is much higher than a company with primarily tangible assets would have.