Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) Shares Gap Up - Here's What Happened

Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $204.73, but opened at $209.30. Carvana shares last traded at $219.78, with a volume of 954,674 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on CVNA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Carvana from $365.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Carvana from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Carvana from an "underweight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. JMP Securities decreased their price target on Carvana from $340.00 to $275.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Carvana from $250.00 to $240.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $253.59.

Carvana Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $210.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $221.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 134.42 and a beta of 3.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a current ratio of 3.64.

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.27. Carvana had a return on equity of 36.59% and a net margin of 1.54%. The company had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.32 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Carvana Co. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Carvana

In other news, CFO Mark W. Jenkins sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.12, for a total transaction of $2,501,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 219,962 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $55,016,895.44. This represents a 4.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Benjamin E. Huston sold 50,000 shares of Carvana stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.49, for a total transaction of $8,924,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 196,278 shares in the company, valued at $35,033,660.22. This trade represents a 20.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 330,810 shares of company stock worth $69,243,820. Company insiders own 17.12% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carvana

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Carvana in the fourth quarter valued at about $179,364,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Carvana by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,425,367 shares of the company's stock worth $2,323,463,000 after acquiring an additional 610,234 shares during the last quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Carvana in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $116,020,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its holdings in shares of Carvana by 1,454.1% during the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 538,473 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,754,000 after purchasing an additional 503,824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Carvana by 89.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,018,321 shares of the company's stock worth $207,086,000 after purchasing an additional 481,912 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.71% of the company's stock.

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.