Cars.com Inc. (NYSE:CARS – Get Free Report)’s share price traded up 12.7% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $13.21 and last traded at $13.2320. Approximately 181,039 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 1,037,803 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.74.
Trending Headlines about Cars.com
Here are the key news stories impacting Cars.com this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Profitability improved: Cars.com reported adjusted EBITDA of $53.0 million, up 4% year over year, with a 29.4% margin that exceeded its 28%-29% guidance range. Net income more than doubled to $14.3 million, while EPS of $0.51 was above the Zacks consensus estimate of $0.49 and matched the broader analyst consensus. Cars.com Reports Second Quarter 2026 Results
- Positive Sentiment: Marketplace momentum strengthened: Marketplace revenue grew more than 7% year over year, described as the company’s strongest growth in five years. Total revenue rose 1% to $179.9 million, broadly in line with guidance. Cars.com Q2 revenue rises as net income doubles
- Positive Sentiment: Capital returns support the stock: The company repurchased 3.7 million shares for $37 million during the quarter and has repurchased $57 million year to date, keeping it on track for its $90 million 2026 target. BTIG Research reaffirmed its Buy rating and assigned a $14 price target. Cars.com’s Buy Rating Reaffirmed at BTIG Research
- Positive Sentiment: Near-term outlook was constructive: Third-quarter revenue guidance of $183.9 million-$187.6 million is above the $183.0 million consensus estimate, with expected adjusted EBITDA margins of 28.5%-29.5%. Full-year revenue guidance of $723.2 million-$737.7 million remains near consensus expectations. Cars.com Beats Q2 Earnings Estimates
- Negative Sentiment: Growth remains modest and mixed: OEM and National revenue declined 18% to $13.6 million, offsetting stronger dealer and Marketplace revenue. Total quarterly revenue increased only 0.7%-1% year over year.
- Neutral Sentiment: Cars.com ended the quarter with $450 million of debt and $333.3 million of liquidity, while recent institutional holdings showed both sizable additions and reductions, signaling mixed investor conviction.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Cars.com from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $13.00 price objective on shares of Cars.com in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Zacks Research cut shares of Cars.com from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. B. Riley Financial downgraded shares of Cars.com from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Cars.com in a report on Thursday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cars.com has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $14.67.
Cars.com Stock Performance
The stock has a market cap of $720.44 million, a P/E ratio of 30.30 and a beta of 1.60. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $10.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.
Cars.com (NYSE:CARS – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.51. Cars.com had a return on equity of 18.12% and a net margin of 3.73%.The firm had revenue of $179.93 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $180.53 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Cars.com Inc. will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Cars.com news, CFO Sonia Jain sold 52,579 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.56, for a total value of $502,655.24. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 346,854 shares in the company, valued at $3,315,924.24. This trade represents a 13.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 3.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its stake in shares of Cars.com by 487.0% during the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 160,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,953,000 after buying an additional 133,002 shares during the period. Kestrel Investment Management Corp purchased a new stake in Cars.com in the fourth quarter worth about $3,752,000. LSV Asset Management lifted its stake in Cars.com by 83.3% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 191,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,330,000 after acquiring an additional 86,800 shares during the period. Breach Inlet Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Cars.com during the 4th quarter worth about $8,899,000. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in Cars.com during the 1st quarter worth about $1,055,000. 89.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Cars.com Company Profile
Cars.com operates as a leading online automotive marketplace in the United States, connecting car shoppers with new and used vehicle listings from dealerships and private sellers. The platform enables consumers to research makes and models, compare prices, read expert and user reviews, and access tools such as TrueCost to estimate ownership expenses over time. Through its website and mobile applications, Cars.com aims to simplify the car-buying process by aggregating detailed vehicle data, payment calculators, and dealership ratings into a single user-friendly experience.
On the dealer side, Cars.com provides a suite of marketing and lead-generation services designed to help automotive retailers reach potential buyers and manage their online presence.
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