At a glance
CarGurus is worth $2.79B, about 20 times its fiscal 2025 earnings. Revenue grew 13.7% to $907.0M in fiscal 2025, with 17.2% kept as profit. It pays no dividend; it spent $721.1M buying back its shares over FY2021–FY2025. The stock returned −11.7% over the past year with dividends reinvested and −1.2% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 42.9% in the 2020 crash (S&P 500: 33.7%) and 71.1% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%).
The business in plain English
CarGurus, Inc. runs online car-shopping marketplaces in the U.S., the U.K. and Canada. The company was founded in 2006. It says it was the most visited automotive shopping site in the U.S. in the fourth quarter of 2025, based on Similarweb traffic data. Shoppers search new and used cars listed by dealers. Eligible used cars get a Deal Rating, from "Great Deal" to "Overpriced." The rating is based on the company's own estimate of each car's local market value.
CarGurus runs a two-sided marketplace, meaning it serves two groups: shoppers and dealers. Revenue comes from three places: subscription fees paid by dealers, advertising from carmakers and other brands, and partnerships with financing companies. Dealers pay for tiered Listings packages that give their cars more visibility and send them sales leads. Prices depend on the dealer's inventory size and region. Dealers can add tools such as PriceVantage pricing software. Financing revenue depends on how many shoppers who pre-qualify for loans on the site end up with funded loans.
CarGurus finished winding down its CarOffer wholesale business by December 31, 2025. CarOffer handled dealer-to-dealer trading and instant cash offers. CarGurus now reports its results as a single segment. In fiscal 2025 (the year ended December 31, 2025), total revenue was $907 million. The U.S. produced $827 million of that, or 91.2%. Markets outside the U.S. supplied 8.8%.
Price history
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CARG -11.7% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By geography
| US | $827.3M | 91.2% |
| Non Us | $79.7M | 8.8% |
Latest results
- In Q2 FY2026 (ended Jun 30, 2026), revenue was $251.0M, up 13.1% from a year earlier, and net income was $49.2M (+120.2%).
- For fiscal 2025, revenue was $907.0M (+13.7% year over year) with a 17.2% net margin.
Financial health check
| Operating margin | 27% good |
|---|---|
| Free cash flow margin | 31.9% good |
| Return on equity (FY2025) | 41.7% good |
| Return on assets (FY2025) | 23.6% good |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $122.1M good |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $551.5M | $77.6M | $153.8M |
| FY2021 | $951.4M | $109.2M | $90.6M |
| FY2022 | $1.66B | $84.4M | $250.2M |
| FY2023 | $698.4M | $36.9M | $100.0M |
| FY2024 | $798.0M | $21.0M | $180.3M |
| FY2025 | $907.0M | $155.9M | $288.9M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $2.79B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | 20.2 |
| Dividend yield | None |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CARG price data to Oct 28, 2026 | -18.3% | -11.7% | +22.6% | -1.2% | — |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | -18.3% |
| 2025 | +5.0% |
| 2024 | +51.2% |
| 2023 | +72.5% |
| 2022 | -58.4% |
| 2021 | +6.0% |
| 2020 | -9.8% |
| 2019 | +4.3% |
| 2018 | +12.5% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Lost 41.8% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 42.9%, back to its old high 4.3 months after the low |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 59.6% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 71.1%, not recovered by the end of the data |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-29 (25 read): 0 open-market purchases and 14 sales ($3.3M), 13 of them under pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plans.
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 13, 2026 | Dafna Sarnoff Chief Marketing Officer | sell (plan) | $635K |
| Aug 28, 2026 | Samuel Zales COO and President | sell (plan) | $365K |
| Aug 12, 2026 | Greg M Schwartz Director | sell | $361K |
| Sep 15, 2026 | Samuel Zales COO and President | sell (plan) | $346K |
| Aug 14, 2026 | Ismail Elshareef Chief Product Officer | sell (plan) | $340K |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| BlackRock, Inc. | 14.3% | Jun 30, 2025 |
| Langley Steinert | 13.1% | Jun 30, 2025 |
| Vanguard Portfolio Management | 5.8% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Vanguard Capital Management | 5.08% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| ArrowMark Colorado Holdings, LLC | 4.42% | Jun 30, 2025 |
| Wellington Management Group LLP | 4.3% | Jun 30, 2026 |
ETFs with the most weight in CARG
| PSCU Invesco S&P SmallCap Utilities & Communication Services ETF | 3.71% |
| CAFG Pacer US Small Cap Cash Cows Growth Leaders ETF | 1.17% |
| VUSE Vident U.S. Equity Strategy ETF | 0.59% |
| RZG Invesco S&P SmallCap 600® Pure Growth ETF | 0.44% |
| QSML WisdomTree U.S. SmallCap Quality Growth Fund | 0.43% |
| VIOG Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF | 0.42% |
| SLYG SPDR S&P 600 Small Cap Growth ETF | 0.4% |
| IJT iShares S&P Small-Cap 600 Growth ETF | 0.4% |
What could go wrong
- Heavy reliance on dealer subscriptions. The business depends heavily on dealers paying subscription fees. If many dealers cancel, resist higher fees, close or merge, revenue would suffer. The annual report lists this risk first.
- Founder holds majority voting control. Multiple share classes give the founder a majority of voting power, making CarGurus a "controlled company." Outside shareholders have little say over the board, major deals or strategy.
- New products and AI tools may falter. CarGurus must keep launching products that catch on, such as its CG Discover AI shopping assistant. It wound down CarOffer, its wholesale arm, in 2025 after it proved less effective when prices were volatile.
- Dependence on search engine rankings. CarGurus relies partly on internet search engines to bring shoppers to its sites. If it slips in search results, traffic would fall, leaving fewer shoppers to connect with dealers.
- Strong competition from other car sites. Online car shopping is highly competitive. Rival sites such as Cars.com, Autotrader.com, TrueCar.com and CARFAX.com, plus new entrants, could draw away shoppers and dealer spending.
- Tied to car sales and the economy. Weak car sales, high interest rates, inflation or new tariffs could squeeze dealers and carmakers. They might then spend less on CarGurus listings and advertising.
Recent events
- Executive or board change; Investor presentation or announcement
- Major agreement signed; Quarterly results released
- Shareholder vote results
- Quarterly results released
- Quarterly results released
- Quarterly results released
For income and retirement investors
CarGurus had no dividend yield as of October 28, 2026, and paid no dividends from fiscal 2021 through fiscal 2025. Income investors get no regular payments, so any cash would have to come from selling shares. Instead, the company returns cash through share buybacks, which can shrink the share count. It spent $721 million on buybacks over fiscal 2021–2025. That included $352 million in fiscal 2025, more than that year's $289 million of free cash flow (cash left after running and investing in the business). The company says buybacks may not continue.
The share price has swung sharply in downturns. In the 2020 COVID crash it fell 42.9% between February 20 and March 23, 2020, then got back to its earlier level by July 31, 2020. In the 2022 bear market it dropped 71.1% between February 28 and October 7, 2022. It had not returned to that peak as of October 28, 2026. As a single stock, CarGurus carries more risk than a diversified fund.
Questions investors ask
How does CarGurus make money?
CarGurus earns revenue from three sources. The first is subscription fees that dealers pay for tiered listing packages and add-on tools. The second is advertising from carmakers and other brands. The third is partnerships with financing companies, with revenue tied to funded loans from shoppers who pre-qualify on its site. Shoppers compare used-car listings using Deal Ratings, which weigh a car's price against its estimated local market value. In fiscal 2025, revenue totaled $907 million, and 91.2% came from the U.S.
Does CarGurus pay a dividend?
No. CarGurus paid no dividends from fiscal 2021 through fiscal 2025 and had no dividend yield as of October 28, 2026. Instead it returns cash through share buybacks. It spent $721 million on them over those five years, including $352 million in fiscal 2025. Buybacks can reduce the share count but pay no income. Investors who rely on cash from their portfolio would have to raise it by selling shares. The company says there is no assurance buybacks will continue.
Why did CarGurus shut down CarOffer?
The CarGurus board decided on August 6, 2025, to wind down CarOffer, its digital wholesale business for dealer-to-dealer trading and instant cash offers. The company concluded the model had proved less effective when vehicle prices were volatile and hard to predict, because dealers wanted more flexibility and automation. The wind-down was completed by December 31, 2025. CarOffer's results are reported as discontinued operations, meaning they are kept separate from the ongoing business. CarGurus now focuses on data and pricing tools rather than handling the transactions themselves.
Is CarGurus profitable?
Yes. In fiscal 2025 CarGurus earned net income of $156 million on revenue of $907 million. That is a 17.2% net margin, or about 17 cents of profit per dollar of sales. Revenue grew 13.7%, and net income rose from $21 million in fiscal 2024. Free cash flow reached $289 million. In the quarter ended June 30, 2026, revenue rose 13.1% to $251 million and net income rose 120.2% to $49 million. At that date it reported no debt and $122 million of cash and investments.
How has CarGurus stock performed?
Unevenly, with big swings. As of October 28, 2026, the share price was down 18.3% year to date and 11.7% over one year. It was up 84% in total over three years but down 6% over five years. Calendar-year returns swung from a 58.4% loss in 2022 to gains of 72.5% in 2023 and 51.2% in 2024. At that date the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, which compares the share price with yearly profit per share, was 20.2 based on fiscal 2025 earnings.