Maplebear (NASDAQ:CART) Upgraded to Neutral at BNP Paribas Exane

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Maplebear (Instacart) to “neutral” from “underperform” and set a $56 price target, implying approximately 24% upside from the reported $45.03 share price.
• Maplebear’s latest quarter showed strong operating growth, with revenue rising 14% year over year to $1.04 billion and adjusted EBITDA increasing 19% to $313 million, though EPS of $0.45 missed the $0.54 consensus estimate.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: MarketBeat reports a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $52.81, while insider ownership stands at 24% and institutional investors hold 63.09% of shares.

Maplebear (NASDAQ:CART - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at BNP Paribas Exane from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday. The brokerage presently has a $56.00 target price on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane's target price points to a potential upside of 24.36% from the stock's current price.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Maplebear from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Maplebear from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Maplebear in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Maplebear in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Maplebear from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $52.81.

Maplebear Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:CART opened at $45.03 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $40.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.78. Maplebear has a 1-year low of $32.73 and a 1-year high of $53.50.

Maplebear (NASDAQ:CART - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.09). Maplebear had a return on equity of 18.67% and a net margin of 12.50%.The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.41 EPS. Maplebear's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Maplebear will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Maplebear news, Director Ravi Gupta sold 181,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.51, for a total value of $7,513,310.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 741,523 shares in the company, valued at $30,780,619.73. This represents a 19.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 24.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Maplebear

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new position in Maplebear in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Maplebear in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Maplebear by 35.7% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 928 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Maplebear by 761.3% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 956 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 845 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Maplebear by 212.7% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,157 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 787 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.09% of the company's stock.

Key Maplebear News

Here are the key news stories impacting Maplebear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter GTV and revenue each increased 14% year over year. Revenue reached $1.04 billion, slightly exceeding Wall Street’s $1.03 billion estimate, indicating continued demand for Instacart’s online grocery marketplace. Instacart Announces Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted EBITDA rose 19% year over year to $313 million, while GAAP net income was $111 million. The results suggest that Maplebear is expanding its core business while maintaining strong cash-generation potential. Instacart's core business delivers double-digit GTV, revenue growth, EPS misses
• Positive Sentiment: Management issued a third-quarter outlook above analyst expectations, signaling confidence that online grocery demand and marketplace momentum will continue. This forward guidance may help offset the quarterly earnings shortfall. Maplebear Inc. Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Key operating metrics generally showed year-over-year improvement, but investors may focus on whether growth is translating into consistent per-share earnings and sustainable margins. Maplebear Q2 Earnings Key Metrics
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted earnings were $0.45 per share, below consensus estimates ranging from $0.54 to $0.55. Although EPS improved from $0.41 a year earlier, the miss raises concerns about profitability and is likely the main reason the stock has decreased despite strong revenue growth. Maplebear Misses Q2 Earnings Estimates

About Maplebear

Maplebear, Inc, doing business as Instacart, operates a leading online grocery and essentials marketplace that connects consumers, retail partners and personal shoppers through its digital platform. The company enables customers to order groceries, household items and specialty products for same-day or scheduled delivery, as well as in-store pickup. By integrating its technology with retailers' existing inventory and point-of-sale systems, Maplebear streamlines the shopping experience and provides real-time availability and pricing.

Founded in 2012 and headquartered in San Francisco, Maplebear has grown from a regional startup to a publicly traded company listed on NASDAQ under the ticker CART.

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.

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