Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) Hits New 12-Month High on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Key Points

• Carvana's stock price reached a new 52-week high of $402.82 following a strong earnings report that exceeded estimates, with $1.28 earnings per share compared to the predicted $1.09.
• Analysts have a positive outlook on Carvana, with several increasing their price targets and the consensus rating being a "Moderate Buy," indicating strong investor confidence.
• Insider trading activity includes significant sales by the CFO and major shareholder, with insiders having sold over $756 million worth of stock in the past ninety days, although they still hold 17.12% of the company.

Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $392.70 and last traded at $402.82, with a volume of 186103 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $333.59.

The company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.54 billion. Carvana had a net margin of 3.46% and a return on equity of 40.57%. Carvana's revenue was up 41.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.05) earnings per share.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CVNA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Carvana from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Carvana from $350.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. JMP Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Carvana from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $425.00 target price (up from $390.00) on shares of Carvana in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wedbush raised Carvana to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $379.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Daniel J. Gill sold 70,166 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.43, for a total transaction of $19,746,817.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 201,087 shares in the company, valued at approximately $56,591,914.41. This represents a 25.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Ernest C. Garcia II sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.99, for a total transaction of $34,699,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 37,092,317 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,870,663,075.83. The trade was a 0.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,343,765 shares of company stock worth $780,120,744 in the last quarter. 17.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CVNA. J.Safra Asset Management Corp increased its holdings in Carvana by 140.8% in the first quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 3,390 shares of the company's stock valued at $709,000 after buying an additional 1,982 shares during the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Carvana in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $51,091,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Carvana by 333.1% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,482 shares of the company's stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 2,678 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Carvana during the fourth quarter valued at $36,527,000. Finally, Brucke Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Carvana during the fourth quarter worth $415,000. 56.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Carvana Stock Down 5.6%

The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $333.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $267.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 4.00 and a quick ratio of 2.70. The company has a market capitalization of $78.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 92.33, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 3.57.

Carvana Company Profile

Carvana Co, together with its subsidiaries, operates an e-commerce platform for buying and selling used cars in the United States. Its platform allows customers to research and identify a vehicle; inspect it using company's 360-degree vehicle imaging technology; obtain financing and warranty coverage; purchase the vehicle; and schedule delivery or pick-up from their desktop or mobile devices.