CARG vs CRMT Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
CarGurus is an asset-light online marketplace connecting car buyers and dealers with high-margin subscription and advertising revenue, while America's Car-Mart is a buy-here-pay-here dealer that directly sells vehicles and provides in-house subprime financing, carrying meaningful credit risk on its loan portfolio. The two represent very different business models within the broader used-car industry — digital marketplace versus vertically integrated dealer-lender.
Use this CARG vs CRMT comparison to evaluate two very different used-car business models. CarGurus offers asset-light, marketplace-driven exposure to used and new vehicle shopping trends; America's Car-Mart offers direct exposure to subprime auto lending economics layered on top of vehicle retail, with credit cycle risk as the key variable.
CARG holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. CARG leads on both 1-year return (+14.44%) and forward P/E quality (12.26x vs -1.05x for CRMT), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. CARG leads on both revenue growth (13.10%) and operating margin (25.27%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for CRMT (+215.13%) than for CARG (+12.62%).
- Want asset-light exposure to online automotive marketplace traffic and dealer subscription revenue
- Prefer a business model without direct subprime lending credit risk
- Value the complementary CarOffer digital wholesale marketplace as an additional growth driver
- Are comfortable with revenue sensitivity to overall new and used vehicle sales cycles
- Want direct exposure to a vertically integrated vehicle sales and subprime financing business model
- Believe underserved credit-challenged customers represent a durable, differentiated market niche
- Are comfortable with credit risk and provision for loan losses as a core part of the investment thesis
- Prefer a smaller, more regionally focused business over a national digital marketplace
| Metric | CARG | CRMT |
|---|---|---|
| AI score | 31.7 | 23.0 |
| AI rank | #2125 | #3788 |
| Latest close | $36.85 | $2.38 |
| 1M return | +9.44% | -34.97% |
| 6M return | +26.20% | -89.45% |
| 1Y return | +14.44% | -94.67% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | CARG | CRMT |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $11.44K (+14.4%) started 2025-08-21 | $532.68 (-94.7%) started 2025-08-21 |
| 5Y ago | $13.4K (+34.0%) started 2021-08-23 | $191.86 (-98.1%) started 2021-08-23 |
| 10Y ago | $13.36K (+33.6%) started 2017-10-12 | $615.94 (-93.8%) started 2016-08-22 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | CARG | CRMT |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $3.28B | $20.62M |
| Trailing P/E | 18.99 | N/A |
| Forward P/E | 12.26 | -1.05 |
| Price/Sales | 3.39 | 0.02 |
| EV/Revenue | 3.46 | 0.58 |
| Analyst target | $41.50 | $7.50 |
| Target upside | +12.62% | +215.13% |
| Metric | CARG | CRMT |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 13.10% | -18.30% |
| Earnings growth | 141.00% | N/A |
| EPS growth | +141.00% | N/A |
| FCF margin | +24.95% | +11.83% |
| Operating margin | 25.27% | -3.40% |
| Profit margin | 18.19% | -10.91% |
| ROIC proxy | 53.47% | -27.38% |
| Return on equity | 53.47% | -27.38% |
| Dividend yield | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Beta | 1.17 | 1.30 |
| Debt/equity | 70.03 | 173.12 |
| Current ratio | 1.85 | 16.90 |
| Quick ratio | 1.51 | 14.70 |
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | CARG | CRMT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growth | +14.44% | -94.67% |
| CAGR | +14.45% | -94.68% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.43 | -1.50 | |
| Max drawdown | 30.92% | 95.59% | |
| Max daily drop | 8.96% | 55.03% | |
| Max wkly drop | 21.28% | 72.96% | |
| 5Y | Growth | +33.95% | -98.08% |
| CAGR | +6.03% | -54.69% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.28 | -0.66 | |
| Max drawdown | 75.38% | 98.38% | |
| Max daily drop | 25.51% | 55.03% | |
| Max wkly drop | 39.69% | 72.96% | |
| 10Y | Growth | +33.61% | -93.84% |
| CAGR | +3.33% | -24.33% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.23 | -0.15 | |
| Max drawdown | 78.66% | 98.80% | |
| Max daily drop | 26.54% | 55.03% | |
| Max wkly drop | 39.69% | 72.96% |
| Category | CARG | CRMT |
|---|---|---|
| Company | CarGurus, Inc. | America's Car-Mart, Inc. |
| Sector | Automotive Marketplace | Automotive Retail |
| Industry | N/A | N/A |
| Core business | Online automotive marketplace connecting car buyers with dealers through vehicle listings, pricing transparency tools, and digital retail products, along with its CarOffer digital wholesale marketplace connecting dealers for vehicle transactions. | Buy-here-pay-here used vehicle dealer that sells vehicles and directly provides in-house financing to primarily subprime and credit-challenged customers, generating revenue from both vehicle sales and interest income on its loan portfolio. |
| Investor focus | Marketplace traffic and dealer subscription growth, digital wholesale (CarOffer) transaction volume, and margin trends as the company balances marketplace and digital retail investments. | Loan portfolio credit performance and default rates, same-store used vehicle sales growth, interest income trends, and provision for credit losses. |
- Leading online automotive marketplace with strong consumer traffic and brand recognition for car shopping
- Asset-light marketplace model generates high margins on dealer subscription and advertising revenue
- CarOffer digital wholesale marketplace adds a complementary dealer-to-dealer transaction revenue stream
- Vertically integrated model combining vehicle sales and in-house financing captures more of the transaction value chain
- Long-standing focus on underserved subprime credit customers provides differentiated market positioning
- Interest income from its loan portfolio provides a recurring revenue stream beyond one-time vehicle sales
- Dealer subscription revenue growth is sensitive to new and used vehicle sales cycles and dealer marketing budgets
- Competitive pressure from other online automotive marketplaces and manufacturer-direct digital retail efforts
- CarOffer wholesale marketplace volume can be more cyclical and margin-sensitive than core listings revenue
- Credit risk and default rates on its subprime loan portfolio are highly sensitive to economic conditions and used vehicle values
- Provision for credit losses can be volatile and directly impacts profitability
- Smaller scale and more regional footprint compared to larger national automotive retail and marketplace peers
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