Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) Upgraded by Argus to "Strong-Buy" Rating

Key Points

• Argus upgraded Carvana to a "strong-buy", while the sell‑side consensus remains a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $440.59 amid wide-ranging analyst views and price targets.
• Carvana handily beat quarterly expectations — reporting EPS $4.22 vs. $1.10 est. and revenue $5.60B (up 58% YoY) with a 6.92% net margin — even as the stock trades near $325, below its 50‑ and 200‑day moving averages.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently, offloading about 300,673 shares (~$133M) in the past 90 days (including large sales by Daniel Gill and CFO Mark Jenkins), leaving insiders with 17.12% ownership.

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Argus to a "strong-buy" rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on CVNA. UBS Group set a $485.00 price target on shares of Carvana in a research report on Friday, February 20th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on Carvana from $470.00 to $320.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Gordon Haskett dropped their target price on shares of Carvana from $435.00 to $350.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Carvana from $500.00 to $440.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Carvana in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $440.59.

Carvana Price Performance

Carvana stock traded up $8.79 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $325.05. The stock had a trading volume of 148,468 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,266,977. The firm's 50 day moving average is $404.04 and its 200 day moving average is $380.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.43 and a beta of 3.60. Carvana has a one year low of $148.25 and a one year high of $486.89. The company has a current ratio of 4.31, a quick ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $4.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $3.12. The business had revenue of $5.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.24 billion. Carvana had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 50.96%. The company's revenue was up 58.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.56 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Carvana will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Carvana

In related news, insider Daniel J. Gill sold 80,000 shares of Carvana stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.50, for a total transaction of $35,160,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 191,106 shares of the company's stock, valued at $83,991,087. The trade was a 29.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark W. Jenkins sold 12,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $403.02, for a total transaction of $5,138,505.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 204,036 shares in the company, valued at $82,230,588.72. This trade represents a 5.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 300,673 shares of company stock valued at $133,268,531. 17.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in Carvana by 1,950.7% during the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 111,190 shares of the company's stock worth $37,467,000 after purchasing an additional 105,768 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in Carvana by 124.9% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 265,921 shares of the company's stock valued at $100,316,000 after acquiring an additional 147,683 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP lifted its position in Carvana by 158.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 16,478 shares of the company's stock worth $5,552,000 after acquiring an additional 10,090 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Carvana by 11.2% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 637,462 shares of the company's stock valued at $240,476,000 after purchasing an additional 64,424 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio lifted its holdings in shares of Carvana by 89.9% during the third quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 37,756 shares of the company's stock worth $14,243,000 after purchasing an additional 17,878 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.71% of the company's stock.

Carvana Company Profile

Carvana Co is an online-only retailer of used vehicles that operates a consumer-facing e-commerce platform for buying and selling cars. The company markets and sells inspected, reconditioned pre-owned vehicles through its website, where shoppers can browse inventory, view detailed 360-degree photos and vehicle history reports, finance purchases, and arrange delivery or pickup. Carvana's model is built around a digital end-to-end car buying experience that aims to simplify vehicle transactions compared with traditional dealerships.

Its products and services include direct retail sales of used cars, trade-in and purchase offers for consumer vehicles, vehicle financing and related protection products, and a seven-day return policy that allows customers to test a vehicle in everyday use.

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