Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA) gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $195.83, but opened at $204.10. Carvana shares last traded at $214.09, with a volume of 455,364 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Carvana in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $340.00 price objective on shares of Carvana in a research note on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Carvana from $365.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Carvana in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Carvana from $320.00 to $280.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Carvana has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $253.59.

Carvana Trading Up 11.7 %

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $209.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $221.92. The company has a market cap of $46.63 billion, a PE ratio of 139.31 and a beta of 3.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a current ratio of 3.64.

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.27. Carvana had a return on equity of 36.59% and a net margin of 1.54%. The firm had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.32 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Carvana Co. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Mark W. Jenkins sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.12, for a total value of $2,501,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 219,962 shares in the company, valued at $55,016,895.44. This represents a 4.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Paul W. Breaux sold 1,362 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.08, for a total value of $367,848.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 153,240 shares in the company, valued at $41,387,059.20. The trade was a 0.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 330,810 shares of company stock worth $69,243,820. Corporate insiders own 17.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Carvana

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CVNA. Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Carvana by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 1,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $265,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Carvana by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Carvana by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 2,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $483,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Carvana by 21.0% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 426 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Carvana by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 3,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $752,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.71% of the company’s stock.

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.