CARG vs KMX Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Compare CarGurus' asset-light auto-listings-and-lead-generation marketplace against CarMax's brick-and-mortar used-car retail-and-financing model.
Use this CarGurus vs CarMax comparison to evaluate the key differences across valuation, growth, profitability, and risk before making an investment decision.
CARG holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. KMX has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+5.12% vs -6.74%), though CARG has the better forward P/E setup (11.21x vs 20.25x for KMX). 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 CARG (+22.66%) than for KMX (-11.70%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
| Metric | CARG | KMX |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 31.8 | 36.1 |
| AI ranki | #2142 | #1589 |
| Latest closei | $33.74 | $63.29 |
| 1M returni | -7.33% | +11.68% |
| 6M returni | -1.35% | +50.51% |
| 1Y returni | -6.74% | +5.12% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | CARG | KMX |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $9.33K (-6.7%) started 2025-09-04 | $10.38K (+3.8%) started 2025-09-04 |
| 5Y ago | $11.34K (+13.4%) started 2021-09-07 | $4.99K (-50.1%) started 2021-09-07 |
| 10Y ago | $12.23K (+22.3%) started 2017-10-12 | $10.63K (+6.3%) started 2016-09-06 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | CARG | KMX |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $3.01B | $8.81B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 17.39 | 38.58 |
| Forward P/Ei | 11.21 | 20.25 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 3.17 | 0.98 |
| Analyst targeti | $41.38 | $54.85 |
| Target upsidei | +22.66% | -11.70% |
| Metric | CARG | KMX |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 13.10% | 5.50% |
| Earnings growthi | 141.00% | -5.20% |
| EPS growthi | +141.00% | -5.20% |
| FCF margini | +24.95% | -0.57% |
| Operating margini | 25.27% | 3.43% |
| Profit margini | 18.19% | 0.79% |
| ROIC proxyi | 53.47% | 3.59% |
| Return on equityi | 53.47% | 3.59% |
| Dividend yieldi | N/A | N/A |
| Betai | 1.16 | 1.16 |
| Debt/equityi | 70.03 | 307.79 |
| Current ratioi | 1.85 | 2.71 |
| Quick ratioi | 1.51 | 0.18 |
Over the past year, CARG and KMX have moved weakly in the same direction (correlation of 0.16), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | CARG | KMX |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | -6.74% | +3.84% |
| CAGRi | -6.75% | +3.84% | |
| Volatilityi | 38.37% | 54.57% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.11 | 0.28 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.15 | 0.35 | |
| Max drawdowni | 30.92% | 49.69% | |
| Current drawdowni | 13.55% | 1.45% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 11.17% | 24.59% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 14.13% | 27.74% | |
| Max daily dropi | 8.96% | 24.33% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 21.28% | 26.25% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +13.41% | -50.13% |
| CAGRi | +2.55% | -13.01% | |
| Volatilityi | 50.33% | 44.95% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.21 | -0.18 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.31 | -0.23 | |
| Max drawdowni | 75.38% | 80.06% | |
| Current drawdowni | 30.36% | 59.13% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 40.66% | 51.07% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 44.89% | 53.60% | |
| Max daily dropi | 25.51% | 24.60% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 39.69% | 26.25% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +22.34% | +6.33% |
| CAGRi | +2.29% | +0.62% | |
| Volatilityi | 50.40% | 40.86% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.21 | 0.11 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.30 | 0.15 | |
| Max drawdowni | 78.66% | 80.06% | |
| Current drawdowni | 39.65% | 59.13% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 43.88% | 30.56% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 47.45% | 39.05% | |
| Max daily dropi | 26.54% | 24.60% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 39.69% | 36.73% |
| Category | CARG | KMX |
|---|---|---|
| Company | CARG | KMX |
| Sector | Communication Services | Consumer Cyclical |
| Industry | Internet Content & Information | Auto & Truck Dealerships |
| Core business | CarGurus, Inc. operates an online automotive platform for buying and selling vehicles in the United States and internationally. | CarMax, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a retailer of used vehicles and related products in the United States. |
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