NASCAR Isn't Publicly Traded, But These Related Stocks Are
Is NASCAR a public stock or do investors have to settle for related companies on the stock market? Here's what investors can expect.
Sep. 17 2021, Published 12:46 p.m. ET
Most sports operations aren't on the stock market. The Green Bay Packers is the only NFL franchise that's public. Even those shares aren't tied directly to the team and are considered worthless. What about another sports sector, NASCAR stock car racing?
NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) is known for series like the Monster Energy Cup and Gander Outdoors Truck Series. Is it known for the stock market, and not just stock cars?
You won't find NASCAR on the public market.
Because NASCAR is a privately held company, investors won't find it on the public stock market. This means the company is able to make investments and decisions without having to think about stock value. Also, it means that NASCAR doesn't have to document financial reports—a task that public companies are subject to.
NASCAR is a privately held company for a reason.
ISC (International Speedway Corporation) is a race track company that hosts many NASCAR races. The other facilities company that hosts NASCAR events is Speedway Motorsports. ISC was public for a number of years, during which the company was required to report attendance revenue and other crucial financial details.
NASCAR doesn't want to dish out fiscal details in this way, so much so that the organization bought out ISC in 2019. The deal was worth $2 billion and gave NASCAR control of noteworthy U.S. racetracks like Daytona International Speedway, Talladega Superspeedway, Route 66 Raceway, and Chicagoland Speedway (to name a few). ISC, which formerly traded under the ticker symbol "ISCA," went private in the deal, which helped NASCAR achieve its goal of keeping financials on the down-low.
NASCAR-related stocks to know about
Video game publisher Motorsport Games Inc. (NASDAQ:MSGM) might not be the real deal on the track, but it's a close relative given it's a leading racing game developer. MSGM stock has lost nearly 60 percent of its value since debuting on the market early this year, but its low value makes it a strong buy in many analysts' eyes. The stock value expectations over the next year range from $15–40 per share, beating the $14.31 it's trading at on Sept. 17.
Dover Motorsports, Inc. (NYSE:DVD) owns two auto racing circuits in the U.S. While this sports-oriented company is a smaller capitalization than you would get with ISC or NASCAR if they were on the market, shares have done decently well over the last year. On a trailing 12-month basis, DVD stock is up nearly 70 percent.
A recent volatile period has brought DVD stock down about 7 percent over the last month, which puts it in a dip. Investors might not get racecar-speed gains, but slow and steady growth is possible given the stock's current position.
Universal Technical Institute Inc. (NYSE:UTI) is another option given its NASCAR technician training program. This is a riskier stock and would be best suited if balanced amid other holdings. Investing in a fund that holds UTI, including the iShares Micro-Cap ETF (IWC) and the Invesco FTSE RAFI U.S. 1500 Small-Mid ETF (PRFZ).
