Cars and Drivers

Why Analysts Are Growing More Bullish on Carvana

Chris Lange

Published: May 23, 2017 12:45 pm

Last Updated: January 12, 2020 11:44 am

Carvana Co. (NYSE: CVNA) has watched its shares fall off since the company came public in late April. Originally, the company priced its 15 million shares at $15 piece, but this fell off a cliff when shares actually hit the market. Despite this drop-off, the end of the quiet period following the initial public offering (IPO) saw analysts overly positive on the stock.

24/7 Wall St. has included some background information on the company and IPO, as well as what some analysts are saying now that the quiet period is over.

The underwriters for the offering were Wells Fargo, Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, Baird, William Blair, BMO Capital Markets and JMP Securities.

This company is a leading e-commerce platform for buying used cars. It is transforming the used car buying experience by giving consumers what they want — a wide selection, great value and quality, transparent pricing and a simple, no pressure transaction. Each element of its business, from inventory procurement to fulfillment and overall ease of the online transaction, has been built for this singular purpose.

JMP Securities initiated it with a Market Outperform rating and a $17 price target. The firm’s bullish case on Carvana is based on five key theses:

• Greater penetration of Carvana’s existing 25 active markets.
• Market expansion—JMP projects 87 markets by 2020.
• Benefiting from eCommerce advantages given its pooled inventory and advanced supply and logistics capabilities.
• Gross profit ramping given scale advantages.
• Potential for high-margin adjacent revenue opportunities with financing, warranties, and customization, among others.

Merrill Lynch started Carvana with a Buy rating and $25 price objective. The firm commented in its report:

We initiate on Carvana (CVNA) with a Buy rating and $25 PO. Carvana is a used car eCommerce platform that is growing rapidly. Carvana remains in growth mode, with forecast 50%+ rev growth through 2020, and has multiple levers to improve profitability. The used car market is ripe for eCommerce disruption. Carvana’s offering is unique and helps simplify the purchase experience.

A few other analysts weighed in as well:

• Robert Baird initiated it with an Outperform rating and a $15 price target.
• William Blair started it with an Outperform rating
• Citigroup started Carvana with a Buy rating and $17 target.
• Wells Fargo started it with an Outperform rating and a $19 price target.
• Craig-Hallum initiated it as a Buy with a $16 price target.
• Susquehanna it at Neutral with just a $10 target price.

Shares of Carvana were traded down 1.3% at $10.94 on Tuesday, with a consensus analyst price target of $10.00 and a post-IPO range of $8.14 to $13.94.