NEW YORK, June 29, 2026, 17:01 EDT
- Copart shares dropped 8.02% to $28.10 at the close, near session lows, after the company said CEO Jeff Liaw will step down.
- I calculated the loss wiped out around $2.4 billion in market value. Nasdaq Composite was up 2.04%.
- Selling picked up on the first session after Russell’s June rebalancing, which moved Copart into mid-cap value groups and out of a few growth and large-cap indexes.
- U.S. markets traded on Monday. Nasdaq says July 3 will be closed for Independence Day in 2026.
Copart, Inc. NASDAQ:CPRT dropped 8.02% on Monday, finishing at $28.10 after the company announced CEO Jeff Liaw will leave at the end of July, with former chief Jay Adair coming back to take over. Shares closed just 3 cents off the day’s low, according to market data. The move left Copart trailing the Nasdaq Composite by around 10 points, as the index added 2.04%.
| Monday close | Price/level | Change | Read-through |
|---|---|---|---|
| Copart NASDAQ:CPRT | $28.10 | -8.02% | Closed near session low |
| Nasdaq Composite | 25,812.52 | +2.04% | Bounced with broad growth names |
| S&P 500 | 7,439.26 | +1.16% | Risk appetite came back |
| RB Global Inc. (NYSE:RBA) | $113.95 | -1.16% | Auction peer outperformed Copart drop |
Copart lost around $2.4 billion in market value after the latest drop, based on a $27.0 billion market cap and a one-day decline. Trading volume totaled 18.09 million shares, running about 23% higher than Robinhood’s 14.66 million average. Shares hit a 52-week low at $28.08.
Copart didn’t bring in an outsider or make a sharp break with its past in the CEO shuffle. Jay Adair, who has been with Copart since 1989, ran the company as CEO from February 2010 through April 2024 and has also been executive chairman. Reuters said Liaw is stepping down as CEO and director, with Adair taking back the CEO job.
Adair said Liaw drove record highs in transaction values, average sale prices and auction liquidity. Liaw called the CEO role the “privilege of a professional lifetime” and said he’d help with the handoff. Copart
Investors are watching the SEC filing since the Copart transition goes beyond a basic press statement. According to a Form 8-K summary, Liaw will act as senior adviser to Adair until July 31, 2027, get cash payments for the transition, keep some vesting rights, and see changes to his equity awards. The filing also notes Adair is the son-in-law of Copart chairman Willis J. Johnson.
Index timing was in play. The new Russell U.S. indexes took effect after the June 26 close, and Monday was the first session with the reshuffled line-up from FTSE Russell’s June update. According to MarketScreener using S&P Capital IQ, Copart moved into the Russell Midcap Value Benchmark and came off the Russell Top 200 Index, the Russell 1000 Growth Benchmark, and the Russell 3000E Growth Benchmark.
| Index item | Copart status shown Monday |
|---|---|
| Russell Midcap Value Benchmark | Was added |
| Russell Top 200 Index | Removed |
| Russell 1000 Growth Benchmark | Removed |
| Russell 3000E Growth Benchmark | Removed |
This comes after the stock got a management shock right when passive funds and factor funds updated their size and style instructions. Nasdaq says around $10.6 trillion is tied to or invested in products tracking Russell U.S. indexes. New membership lists kicked in at Monday’s open.
The Russell trade was already seen as big. Steven DeSanctis, equity analyst at Jefferies, told Reuters it might be a “really massive trade.” Melissa Roberts, analyst at Stephens, called Friday a “key liquidity day” linked to close to $150 billion in estimated reconstitution-day trading. Reuters
Copart shares dropped after the company posted a quarter with stronger profit but softer growth. Revenue for the fiscal third quarter rose 2.1% to $1.2 billion for the period ended April 30. Gross profit increased 3.7% to $572.6 million. Net income slipped 1.0% to $402.4 million. Diluted EPS was 43 cents, up from 42 cents.
| Fiscal Q3 metric | Reported figure | Year-on-year change |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.2 billion | up 2.1% |
| Gross profit | $572.6 million | up 3.7% |
| Net income | $402.4 million | down 1.0% |
| Diluted EPS | $0.43 | up 2.4% |
Unit growth is still the issue for Copart. Back in May, Liaw told investors that while the insurance business had a long-term growth story, claims activity was muted as people cut or changed coverage due to higher premiums. He noted total loss frequency came in at 23.6% for the first calendar quarter, jumping nearly five points in four years, and said Copart “helped to drive it upwards.” Investing.com
Repairer Driven News said Copart’s global insurance unit sales dropped 2.7% last quarter, or 1.9% when catastrophes are stripped out. U.S. insurance unit volume slid 4.2%, or a little more than 3% without catastrophe volume, according to the same earnings call.
This week is a short one. Nasdaq will close for U.S. Independence Day on Friday, July 3, according to its 2026 holiday calendar.
