CARS.COM INC (CARS) Fundamental Analysis & Valuation
NYSE:CARS • US14575E1055
Current stock price
11.07 USD
-0.08 (-0.72%)
At close:
11.07 USD
0 (0%)
After Hours:
This CARS fundamental analysis includes valuation metrics, fair value assessment, financial health analysis, profitability trends, growth metrics and dividend sustainability analysis.
1. CARS Profitability Analysis
1.1 Basic Checks
- In the past year CARS was profitable.
- CARS had a positive operating cash flow in the past year.
- CARS had positive earnings in each of the past 5 years.
- Each year in the past 5 years CARS had a positive operating cash flow.
1.2 Ratios
- Looking at the Return On Assets, with a value of 1.89%, CARS is in line with its industry, outperforming 57.97% of the companies in the same industry.
- CARS has a Return On Equity of 4.24%. This is in the better half of the industry: CARS outperforms 60.87% of its industry peers.
- CARS has a Return On Invested Capital of 4.33%. This is in the better half of the industry: CARS outperforms 63.77% of its industry peers.
- CARS had an Average Return On Invested Capital over the past 3 years of 3.91%. This is significantly below the industry average of 10.91%.
- The 3 year average ROIC (3.91%) for CARS is below the current ROIC(4.33%), indicating increased profibility in the last year.
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ROA | 1.89% | ||
| ROE | 4.24% | ||
| ROIC | 4.33% |
ROA(3y)5.44%
ROA(5y)3.81%
ROE(3y)12.58%
ROE(5y)8.98%
ROIC(3y)3.91%
ROIC(5y)4.08%
1.3 Margins
- Looking at the Profit Margin, with a value of 2.77%, CARS is in line with its industry, outperforming 59.42% of the companies in the same industry.
- CARS's Profit Margin has improved in the last couple of years.
- CARS's Operating Margin of 8.33% is fine compared to the rest of the industry. CARS outperforms 69.57% of its industry peers.
- In the last couple of years the Operating Margin of CARS has grown nicely.
- The Gross Margin of CARS (66.72%) is better than 60.87% of its industry peers.
- CARS's Gross Margin has been stable in the last couple of years.
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| OM | 8.33% | ||
| PM (TTM) | 2.77% | ||
| GM | 66.72% |
OM growth 3Y-6.67%
OM growth 5Y9.03%
PM growth 3Y1.77%
PM growth 5YN/A
GM growth 3Y-1.02%
GM growth 5Y-1.06%
2. CARS Health Analysis
2.1 Basic Checks
- With a Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) below the Cost of Capital (WACC), CARS is destroying value.
- CARS has less shares outstanding than it did 1 year ago.
- The number of shares outstanding for CARS has been reduced compared to 5 years ago.
- CARS has a worse debt/assets ratio than last year.
2.2 Solvency
- CARS has an Altman-Z score of 0.40. This is a bad value and indicates that CARS is not financially healthy and even has some risk of bankruptcy.
- CARS has a Altman-Z score of 0.40. This is in the lower half of the industry: CARS underperforms 60.87% of its industry peers.
- CARS has a debt to FCF ratio of 3.06. This is a good value and a sign of high solvency as CARS would need 3.06 years to pay back of all of its debts.
- With a decent Debt to FCF ratio value of 3.06, CARS is doing good in the industry, outperforming 63.77% of the companies in the same industry.
- A Debt/Equity ratio of 0.96 indicates that CARS is somewhat dependend on debt financing.
- With a Debt to Equity ratio value of 0.96, CARS is not doing good in the industry: 75.36% of the companies in the same industry are doing better.
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Debt/Equity | 0.96 | ||
| Debt/FCF | 3.06 | ||
| Altman-Z | 0.4 |
ROIC/WACC0.65
WACC6.68%
2.3 Liquidity
- A Current Ratio of 1.87 indicates that CARS should not have too much problems paying its short term obligations.
- CARS's Current ratio of 1.87 is in line compared to the rest of the industry. CARS outperforms 50.72% of its industry peers.
- A Quick Ratio of 1.87 indicates that CARS should not have too much problems paying its short term obligations.
- CARS has a Quick ratio (1.87) which is comparable to the rest of the industry.
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Current Ratio | 1.87 | ||
| Quick Ratio | 1.87 |
3. CARS Growth Analysis
3.1 Past
- The earnings per share for CARS have decreased strongly by -55.56% in the last year.
- The earnings per share for CARS have been decreasing by -20.85% on average. This is quite bad
- CARS shows a small growth in Revenue. In the last year, the Revenue has grown by 0.57%.
- Measured over the past years, CARS shows a small growth in Revenue. The Revenue has been growing by 5.73% on average per year.
EPS 1Y (TTM)-55.56%
EPS 3Y-23.93%
EPS 5Y-20.85%
EPS Q2Q%-53.85%
Revenue 1Y (TTM)0.57%
Revenue growth 3Y3.42%
Revenue growth 5Y5.73%
Sales Q2Q%1.92%
3.2 Future
- Based on estimates for the next years, CARS will show a very strong growth in Earnings Per Share. The EPS will grow by 48.87% on average per year.
- Based on estimates for the next years, CARS will show a small growth in Revenue. The Revenue will grow by 2.70% on average per year.
EPS Next Y136.94%
EPS Next 2Y67.86%
EPS Next 3Y48.87%
EPS Next 5YN/A
Revenue Next Year1.07%
Revenue Next 2Y1.82%
Revenue Next 3Y2.23%
Revenue Next 5Y2.7%
3.3 Evolution
- When comparing the EPS growth rate of the last years to the growth rate of the upcoming years, we see that the growth is accelerating.
- When comparing the Revenue growth rate of the last years to the growth rate of the upcoming years, we see that the growth is decreasing.
4. CARS Valuation Analysis
4.1 Price/Earnings Ratio
- With a Price/Earnings ratio of 34.59, CARS can be considered very expensive at the moment.
- The rest of the industry has a similar Price/Earnings ratio as CARS.
- The average S&P500 Price/Earnings ratio is at 27.42. CARS is valued slightly more expensive when compared to this.
- Based on the Price/Forward Earnings ratio of 14.60, the valuation of CARS can be described as correct.
- Compared to the rest of the industry, the Price/Forward Earnings ratio of CARS indicates a somewhat cheap valuation: CARS is cheaper than 63.77% of the companies listed in the same industry.
- Compared to an average S&P500 Price/Forward Earnings ratio of 22.29, CARS is valued a bit cheaper.
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 34.59 | ||
| Fwd PE | 14.6 |
4.2 Price Multiples
- Based on the Enterprise Value to EBITDA ratio, CARS is valued a bit cheaper than 76.81% of the companies in the same industry.
- CARS's Price/Free Cash Flow ratio is rather cheap when compared to the industry. CARS is cheaper than 97.10% of the companies in the same industry.
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| P/FCF | 4.41 | ||
| EV/EBITDA | 6.9 |
4.3 Compensation for Growth
- The low PEG Ratio(NY), which compensates the Price/Earnings for growth, indicates a rather cheap valuation of the company.
- The decent profitability rating of CARS may justify a higher PE ratio.
- CARS's earnings are expected to grow with 48.87% in the coming years. This may justify a more expensive valuation.
PEG (NY)0.25
PEG (5Y)N/A
EPS Next 2Y67.86%
EPS Next 3Y48.87%
5. CARS Dividend Analysis
5.1 Amount
- No dividends for CARS!.
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Dividend Yield | 0% |
CARS Fundamentals: All Metrics, Ratios and Statistics
11.07
-0.08 (-0.72%)
Chartmill FA Rating
GICS SectorCommunication Services
GICS IndustryGroupMedia & Entertainment
GICS IndustryInteractive Media & Services
Earnings (Last)02-26 2026-02-26/bmo
Earnings (Next)05-07 2026-05-07
Inst Owners99.46%
Inst Owner Change-0.28%
Ins Owners5.13%
Ins Owner Change15.51%
Market Cap649.14M
Revenue(TTM)723.24M
Net Income(TTM)20.05M
Analysts78.46
Price Target14.28 (29%)
Short Float %16.02%
Short Ratio4.55
Dividend
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Dividend Yield | 0% |
Yearly DividendN/A
Dividend Growth(5Y)N/A
DP0%
Div Incr Years0
Div Non Decr Years0
Ex-DateN/A
Surprises & Revisions
EPS beat(2)0
Avg EPS beat(2)-35.11%
Min EPS beat(2)-46.11%
Max EPS beat(2)-24.1%
EPS beat(4)1
Avg EPS beat(4)-36.74%
Min EPS beat(4)-127.23%
Max EPS beat(4)50.47%
EPS beat(8)4
Avg EPS beat(8)38.2%
EPS beat(12)6
Avg EPS beat(12)134.85%
EPS beat(16)8
Avg EPS beat(16)98.29%
Revenue beat(2)0
Avg Revenue beat(2)-1.8%
Min Revenue beat(2)-1.88%
Max Revenue beat(2)-1.72%
Revenue beat(4)0
Avg Revenue beat(4)-2.08%
Min Revenue beat(4)-2.38%
Max Revenue beat(4)-1.72%
Revenue beat(8)0
Avg Revenue beat(8)-2.43%
Revenue beat(12)0
Avg Revenue beat(12)-2.19%
Revenue beat(16)0
Avg Revenue beat(16)-2.02%
PT rev (1m)-16.6%
PT rev (3m)-15.88%
EPS NQ rev (1m)15.74%
EPS NQ rev (3m)-5.66%
EPS NY rev (1m)4.94%
EPS NY rev (3m)1.83%
Revenue NQ rev (1m)-0.14%
Revenue NQ rev (3m)-2.03%
Revenue NY rev (1m)0.05%
Revenue NY rev (3m)-1.69%
Valuation
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 34.59 | ||
| Fwd PE | 14.6 | ||
| P/S | 0.9 | ||
| P/FCF | 4.41 | ||
| P/OCF | 4.28 | ||
| P/B | 1.37 | ||
| P/tB | N/A | ||
| EV/EBITDA | 6.9 |
EPS(TTM)0.32
EY2.89%
EPS(NY)0.76
Fwd EY6.85%
FCF(TTM)2.51
FCFY22.7%
OCF(TTM)2.59
OCFY23.36%
SpS12.33
BVpS8.06
TBVpS-3.78
PEG (NY)0.25
PEG (5Y)N/A
Graham Number7.617 (-31.19%)
Profitability
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ROA | 1.89% | ||
| ROE | 4.24% | ||
| ROCE | 6.35% | ||
| ROIC | 4.33% | ||
| ROICexc | 4.6% | ||
| ROICexgc | 20.69% | ||
| OM | 8.33% | ||
| PM (TTM) | 2.77% | ||
| GM | 66.72% | ||
| FCFM | 20.37% |
ROA(3y)5.44%
ROA(5y)3.81%
ROE(3y)12.58%
ROE(5y)8.98%
ROIC(3y)3.91%
ROIC(5y)4.08%
ROICexc(3y)4.11%
ROICexc(5y)4.27%
ROICexgc(3y)19.99%
ROICexgc(5y)32.47%
ROCE(3y)5.73%
ROCE(5y)5.98%
ROICexgc growth 3Y-29.55%
ROICexgc growth 5Y-3.31%
ROICexc growth 3Y-3.68%
ROICexc growth 5Y15.91%
OM growth 3Y-6.67%
OM growth 5Y9.03%
PM growth 3Y1.77%
PM growth 5YN/A
GM growth 3Y-1.02%
GM growth 5Y-1.06%
F-Score6
Asset Turnover0.68
Health
| Industry Rank | Sector Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Debt/Equity | 0.96 | ||
| Debt/FCF | 3.06 | ||
| Debt/EBITDA | 2.97 | ||
| Cap/Depr | 4.67% | ||
| Cap/Sales | 0.59% | ||
| Interest Coverage | 250 | ||
| Cash Conversion | 99.7% | ||
| Profit Quality | 734.85% | ||
| Current Ratio | 1.87 | ||
| Quick Ratio | 1.87 | ||
| Altman-Z | 0.4 |
F-Score6
WACC6.68%
ROIC/WACC0.65
Cap/Depr(3y)2.91%
Cap/Depr(5y)9.69%
Cap/Sales(3y)0.4%
Cap/Sales(5y)1.46%
Profit Quality(3y)386.5%
Profit Quality(5y)578.41%
High Growth Momentum
Growth
EPS 1Y (TTM)-55.56%
EPS 3Y-23.93%
EPS 5Y-20.85%
EPS Q2Q%-53.85%
EPS Next Y136.94%
EPS Next 2Y67.86%
EPS Next 3Y48.87%
EPS Next 5YN/A
Revenue 1Y (TTM)0.57%
Revenue growth 3Y3.42%
Revenue growth 5Y5.73%
Sales Q2Q%1.92%
Revenue Next Year1.07%
Revenue Next 2Y1.82%
Revenue Next 3Y2.23%
Revenue Next 5Y2.7%
EBIT growth 1Y12.41%
EBIT growth 3Y-3.48%
EBIT growth 5Y15.27%
EBIT Next Year224.63%
EBIT Next 3Y51.55%
EBIT Next 5Y30.03%
FCF growth 1Y-1.45%
FCF growth 3Y10.64%
FCF growth 5Y3.87%
OCF growth 1Y-0.58%
OCF growth 3Y5.67%
OCF growth 5Y1.81%
CARS.COM INC / CARS Fundamental Analysis FAQ
What is the fundamental rating for CARS stock?
ChartMill assigns a fundamental rating of 5 / 10 to CARS.
What is the valuation status of CARS.COM INC (CARS) stock?
ChartMill assigns a valuation rating of 6 / 10 to CARS.COM INC (CARS). This can be considered as Fairly Valued.
How profitable is CARS.COM INC (CARS) stock?
CARS.COM INC (CARS) has a profitability rating of 7 / 10.
What are the PE and PB ratios of CARS.COM INC (CARS) stock?
The Price/Earnings (PE) ratio for CARS.COM INC (CARS) is 34.59 and the Price/Book (PB) ratio is 1.37.
Can you provide the financial health for CARS stock?
The financial health rating of CARS.COM INC (CARS) is 4 / 10.