stockrowWhat it does
Copart is an online vehicle-auction and remarketing company founded in 1982 and headquartered in Dallas. A. Jayson Adair is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. It processes vehicles for sellers, stores and photographs them, handles transport and title-related work, and sells them principally through its VB3 online marketplace.
Insurance companies are its main source of vehicles. Many are damaged vehicles that insurers have classified as total losses, or recovered stolen vehicles on which insurers have settled claims. Other sellers include dealers, individuals, charities, rental-car companies, banks, finance companies, and fleet operators. Buyers include dismantlers, rebuilders, repair licensees, used-vehicle dealers, exporters, and, where permitted, the public.
VB3 uses online preliminary bidding followed by a live internet-only auction. Buyers can bid from anywhere with internet access, while sellers use Copart’s tools to assign vehicles, monitor processing and sales, access images and data, and manage title and payment workflows. Copart also provides services around total-loss estimation, vehicle transport, title transfers, loan payoffs, condition reporting, and data reporting.
Beyond damaged cars, the company sells dealer trade-ins through Copart Dealer Services, serves banks, rental companies and fleets through BluCar, purchases vehicles from consumers through Cash For Cars, auctions powersports vehicles through National Powersport Auctions, and remarks construction, agricultural and fleet equipment through Purple Wave. In the U.K., it also dismantles vehicles and sells used parts through GPS.
How it makes money
Copart has U.S. and International reportable segments. It earns most of its revenue as an agent: it auctions vehicles owned by sellers and records the fees it charges rather than the vehicle’s full selling price. Those service fees can cover listing, purchasing and selling, transport, storage, title preparation, bidding, and loading. Most are recognized when an auction is completed; annual membership access fees are recognized over the membership term.
It also acts as a principal in selected markets, buying vehicles and reselling them for its own account. This is more common in the U.K., Germany and Spain, and includes used-parts sales through GPS in the U.K. Principal transactions record the gross auction selling price as vehicle-sales revenue, while the cost of the acquired vehicle is recorded separately.
Service revenue was $4.0 billion in FY2026, representing 85.1% of revenue; vehicle sales were $696.7 million, representing 14.9%. Service revenue grew 0.02% and vehicle-sales revenue grew 2.71% in FY2026. Total revenue was $4.7 billion in FY2026; fourth-quarter revenue was $1.2 billion.
Revenue per vehicle depends in part on auction selling prices, because many service fees are linked to sale values. Selling prices are affected by demand for repairable vehicles and recycled parts, used-car prices, vehicle mix, commodity prices and foreign-currency movements. Management said on the call that it is expanding Title Express, long-haul delivery, and dedicated wholesale facilities, which create additional services and fee opportunities. It also said it will continue seeking carrier fee opportunities, including loan-payoff products.
| Product or service | Revenue, FY2026 | Share | Change on the year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service revenues | $4.0 billion | 85.1% | 0.02% |
| Vehicle sales | $696.7 million | 14.9% | 2.71% |
Customers and how it sells
Copart processed vehicles from hundreds of sellers, and no single customer accounted for more than 10% of consolidated revenue in fiscal 2026. Insurance companies supplied 79% of vehicles processed in fiscal 2026. Copart contracts with national, regional and branch offices of insurers, fleets, financial institutions, rental-car companies and other sellers, with agreements tailored by geography and vehicle type.
The company reaches buyers through its website and mobile application, registered brokers where licensing rules require them, and direct marketing. Its member base includes vehicle dismantling and recycling businesses, rebuilders, used-car dealers, exporters and the public. Management said on the call that Copart has approximately 1 million members across more than 185 countries. U.S. vehicles sold to international buyers represented 38.2% of fiscal 2026 units.
Copart operates in the U.S., U.K., Germany, Brazil, Canada, the U.A.E., Spain, Finland, Oman, the Republic of Ireland and Bahrain. The U.S. segment generated 81.6% of fiscal 2026 revenue and the International segment generated 18.4%. Its facilities provide local vehicle collection, storage, inspection and release points, while its auctions connect those sites to domestic and international buyers.
Suppliers and costs
Vehicle sellers are Copart’s principal supply source, particularly insurance companies that assign total-loss and recovered-stolen vehicles. It also depends on third-party transport companies alongside its own fleet to collect and move vehicles. The company maintains transport contracts intended to enable pickup of most sellers’ vehicles within 24 hours. No sole-source supplier is identified.
Facility operating costs are primarily labor at facilities; transportation, including miles traveled and fuel; facility maintenance, property taxes, rent and insurance; marketing and auction costs; and costs of vehicles sold. General and administrative expense includes management, accounting, data processing, sales staff, professional services, marketing, and technology development and maintenance.
Management said on the call that $17.0 million of the year-over-year increase in facility-operations cost was associated with long-haul delivery. It is focused on reducing facility costs per vehicle through cost management, while continuing investment in services and capacity.
- Revenue$4.7B
- Cost of revenue−$2.6B
- Selling, general and administrative−$431.3M
- Operating income$1.7B
Competitive position
Copart competes for seller contracts, vehicle supply agreements, buyers and storage facilities with national, regional and local vehicle remarketers, auction companies and dismantlers. The named large U.S. auction competitors are RB Global, including Insurance Auto Auctions, Carvana, Openlane, Manheim, and ACV Auctions. LKQ is identified as the largest national U.S. dismantler. Dismantlers, including members of the American Recycling Association and United Recyclers Group LLC, may buy salvage vehicles directly from insurers instead of using a remarketer. Internationally, competition includes vehicle auction and sales companies, dismantlers and privately held independent remarketers.
Copart’s stated differentiators include its facility network, global buyer participation, online auction platform, seller workflows, title-processing capabilities, transport capacity, vehicle data, and ability to respond to catastrophes. Management said on the call that it has more than 275 locations, sells over 4 million vehicles annually, and has approximately 1 million members across more than 185 countries.
Our reading: The physical network and operating processes are a strong moat because sellers need collection, storage, title handling and catastrophe response near where vehicles are located.
Our reading: Buyer liquidity is a strong moat because the marketplace links a large international buyer base to sellers, but auction rivals and direct insurer-to-dismantler purchases remain alternatives.
Our reading: Software, data and title-processing tools reinforce the operating network, but competitors can develop or acquire digital marketplace capabilities.
| Competitor | Where they compete | Threat (our reading) |
|---|---|---|
| RB Global | U.S. vehicle auction and sales | High |
| Insurance Auto Auctions, Inc. | U.S. vehicle auction and sales | High |
| Carvana | U.S. vehicle auction and sales | High |
| Openlane | U.S. vehicle auction and sales | High |
| Manheim, Inc. | U.S. vehicle auction and sales | High |
| ACV Auctions Inc. | U.S. digital automotive marketplace | Medium |
| LKQ Corporation | U.S. salvage vehicle dismantling | High |
| United Recyclers Group LLC | U.S. vehicle dismantling | Medium |
Growth opportunities
Copart’s growth strategy has three stated directions: expand insurance vehicle remarketing internationally, grow U.S. whole-car volumes and related services, and develop technology-enabled services for sellers, buyers and other customers. It intends to pursue these through new facilities, acquisitions, new seller relationships, expansion of existing operations, and complementary businesses.
International expansion draws on its buyer network, operating capabilities and insurer relationships. Management said on the call that all of its international markets are profitable and that it intends to expand within existing markets and into new countries. It also said that it has established its operating model in Germany and plans to expand across Europe. Copart opened two operational facilities in Brazil and seven in the U.S. during fiscal 2026.
In the U.S., it is seeking dealer, manufacturer, financial-institution, rental and fleet volumes. The company sizes the U.S. auction-mediated noninsurance market at more than 15,000,000 vehicles. Management said on the call that 25 dedicated wholesale facilities in leading U.S. metro markets serve 80.0% of the addressable wholesale market.
Copart has agreed to acquire ACV, subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory review. It expects ACV to operate as an independent subsidiary, while using Copart locations as staging areas and linking buyer liquidity and selected technology experiences. Management said on the call that ACV sells more than 800,000 vehicles annually and operates with virtually no land of its own.
- $3.5BFY2022
- $3.9BFY2023
- $4.2BFY2024
- $4.6BFY2025
- $4.7BFY2026
Structural risks
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Copart depends on a limited number of major vehicle sellers for a substantial portion of revenue, even though no single customer exceeded 10% of consolidated revenue in fiscal 2026.
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Vehicle supply and results depend on accident rates, claims frequency, total-loss rates, used-vehicle values, salvage values, weather and catastrophes. Mild weather can reduce available salvage vehicles, while severe events can create volumes that require abnormal response costs.
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International operations expose Copart to political issues, foreign-exchange movements, trade barriers, conflicts, varying laws, localization requirements, staffing and infrastructure costs, and different vehicle-disposition market structures.
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Growth through facilities and acquisitions depends on finding suitably zoned sites, retaining vehicle supply, integrating operations, hiring and training personnel, maintaining efficiency, and obtaining needed regulatory approvals.
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Information-technology outages, security failures or unauthorized access could disrupt the marketplace and harm results and reputation. The business also must keep pace with technology changes and customer requirements.
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Environmental, title-processing, zoning, vehicle-sale, licensing and other regulations can increase costs or restrict operations. Storage of damaged vehicles and acquired land with prior environmental issues can create remediation or liability exposure.
Bottom line
Our reading
Our reading: Copart is a marketplace-and-operations business: its online auctions depend on a physical network that collects, stores, documents and releases vehicles, with insurance sellers supplying most volume. Its fee-based agent model accounts for most revenue, while principal vehicle sales add a smaller, inventory-owning activity. Its exposure to claim activity, weather, vehicle values and insurer assignments can move volumes, while international expansion, noninsurance channels and the proposed ACV acquisition broaden the set of vehicles and services it seeks to handle.