JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) Stock

Key Points

• JPMorgan raised its price target on Carvana to $510 and maintained an overweight rating, implying roughly a 33% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly bullish — 19 Buys vs. 6 Holds — with recent upward price-target revisions (e.g., UBS $545, BTIG $535, Wells Fargo $525) and a consensus average target of $474.27 ("Moderate Buy").
• Risk factors: Carvana trades near $382.91 with a high valuation (P/E 87.7) and insiders have sold about 467,626 shares (~$192 million) in the past three months, leaving insiders with 16.36% ownership.

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $490.00 to $510.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective points to a potential upside of 33.19% from the stock's current price.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on CVNA. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $460.00 price target on shares of Carvana in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Carvana from $450.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Carvana from $450.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Carvana from $500.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Carvana in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $474.27.

Carvana Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CVNA traded down $94.81 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $382.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,142,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,380,747. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $426.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $378.06. Carvana has a fifty-two week low of $148.25 and a fifty-two week high of $486.89. The company has a market capitalization of $83.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 87.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 3.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 4.05 and a quick ratio of 2.55.

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.26). Carvana had a return on equity of 30.62% and a net margin of 3.44%.The company had revenue of $5.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 54.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Carvana will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Carvana

In other news, COO Benjamin E. Huston sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.50, for a total value of $17,580,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 100,758 shares of the company's stock, valued at $44,283,141. This represents a 28.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Thomas Taira sold 30,952 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $435.96, for a total value of $13,493,833.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 69,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,464,884.80. This represents a 30.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 467,626 shares of company stock worth $192,090,109. 16.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Carvana

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in shares of Carvana in the second quarter worth $25,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in Carvana in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in Carvana by 8,700.0% during the third quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 88 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its stake in Carvana by 112.5% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 85 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Carvana in the third quarter worth $38,000. 56.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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.