CarMax Inc. (NYSE: KMX) reported its fiscal third-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Friday. The company had $0.63 in earnings per share (EPS) on $3.54 billion in revenue. That compared to consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters that call for $0.68 in EPS on revenue of $3.61 billion. The same period from the previous year had $0.60 in EPS on $3.41 billion in revenue.
While total used vehicle unit sales grew 3.2%, comparable store used unit sales fell 0.8% from the prior year’s third quarter. The comparable store used unit sales performance reflected a modest decrease in store traffic, which was largely offset by improved conversion. Apart from this, wholesale unit sales increased 3.4%.
During the third quarter, CarMax opened two stores in existing markets and relocated one store. Subsequent to the end of the quarter, the company entered the Boston market with two stores.
The company repurchased 7.7 million shares of common stock for $445.7 million. Some $1.55 billion remains available for repurchase under the current authorization.
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Tom Folliard, president and CEO of CarMax, commented on earnings:
We had a challenging sales quarter, which together with higher advertising expenses, contributed to the year-over-year decline in third quarter net earnings. However, we continued to grow both total revenues and EPS, reflecting the contributions from new stores and continued share repurchase activity.
On the books, cash and cash equivalents totaled $33.3 million at the end of the quarter, compared to $189.9 million in the same period from the previous year.
CarMax has underperformed the market, with the stock down 14% year to date (as of Thursday’s close). However, over the past 52 weeks the stock is down only about 5%.
Shares of CarMax were trading down 10% at $51.19 Friday morning, with a consensus analyst price target of $71.63 and a 52-week trading range of $50.58 to $75.40.
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