Capricorn Fund Managers Ltd Makes New $29.87 Million Investment in Carvana Co. $CVNA

Key Points

• Capricorn Fund Managers disclosed a new stake in Carvana during Q1, buying 95,000 shares worth about $29.87 million. The position makes Carvana the fund’s largest holding, at roughly 4.7% of its portfolio.
• Wall Street sentiment remains generally positive on Carvana, with multiple firms reiterating buy or outperform ratings. The stock currently carries a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $93.14.
• Carvana recently posted strong quarterly results, reporting $1.69 EPS versus the $0.32 estimate and revenue of $6.43 billion, both above expectations. However, insiders have been selling shares, including CFO Mark W. Jenkins and Director Ira J. Platt.

Capricorn Fund Managers Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 95,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,866,000. Carvana comprises about 4.7% of Capricorn Fund Managers Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its largest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gavilan Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Carvana during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,030,000. Sands Capital Management LLC grew its position in Carvana by 44.4% in the fourth quarter. Sands Capital Management LLC now owns 2,442,534 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,030,798,000 after acquiring an additional 751,019 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Carvana by 301.4% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 7,230 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,727,000 after purchasing an additional 5,429 shares during the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its holdings in shares of Carvana by 581.4% in the 3rd quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 16,491 shares of the company's stock worth $6,220,000 after acquiring an additional 14,071 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Carvana by 0.5% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,989,809 shares of the company's stock worth $1,505,186,000 after purchasing an additional 18,631 shares during the last quarter. 56.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on CVNA. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Carvana in a research note on Friday, June 5th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $104.00 target price (up from $97.00) on shares of Carvana in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Carvana from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Carvana from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Carvana in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $93.14.

Carvana Price Performance

NYSE:CVNA opened at $65.86 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 2.57 and a current ratio of 4.09. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $70.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.29. Carvana Co. has a 52-week low of $54.46 and a 52-week high of $97.38. The company has a market cap of $72.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.06, a P/E/G ratio of 10.75 and a beta of 3.45.

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $1.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $1.37. Carvana had a net margin of 6.40% and a return on equity of 41.46%. The company had revenue of $6.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.12 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Carvana Co. will post 1.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Carvana

In other news, CFO Mark W. Jenkins sold 63,750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.40, for a total value of $4,488,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 1,036,594 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $72,976,217.60. The trade was a 5.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Ira J. Platt sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.83, for a total value of $1,017,450.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 186,470 shares in the company, valued at $12,648,260.10. This represents a 7.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 297,062 shares of company stock valued at $21,683,833. 15.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Carvana 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CVNA? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.