Wall Street Zen Downgrades Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) to Hold

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Wedbush raised Carvana to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Carvana from $290.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Bank of America upped their price target on Carvana from $325.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Citigroup increased their target price on Carvana from $280.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Carvana from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Carvana presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $283.59.

Carvana Price Performance

Shares of CVNA stock opened at $321.06 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $282.80 and its 200-day moving average is $242.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.97, a quick ratio of 2.70 and a current ratio of 3.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.75 billion, a PE ratio of 112.65, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 3.65. Carvana has a 52 week low of $107.75 and a 52 week high of $351.43.

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.76. The company had revenue of $4.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.94 billion. Carvana had a return on equity of 44.86% and a net margin of 2.68%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 38.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.23 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Carvana will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Benjamin E. Huston sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.35, for a total transaction of $10,517,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 146,278 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,769,577.30. This trade represents a 25.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel J. Gill sold 70,166 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $281.43, for a total value of $19,746,817.38. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 201,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,591,914.41. The trade was a 25.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,343,166 shares of company stock worth $403,944,081 over the last ninety days. 17.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its holdings in shares of Carvana by 961.5% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 138 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Carvana by 109.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Carvana in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Carvana in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Carvana by 79.2% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. 56.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.