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 (+17.53% vs -12.95%), though CARG has the better forward P/E setup (10.02x 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 (+36.30%) 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 | 36.8 |
| AI ranki | #2100 | #1459 |
| Latest closei | $31.52 | $51.55 |
| 1M returni | +3.11% | -10.29% |
| 3M returni | -5.54% | -11.56% |
| 6M returni | -16.21% | +34.70% |
| 1Y returni | -12.95% | +17.53% |
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 | $8.7K (-13.0%) started 2025-10-23 | $11.96K (+19.6%) started 2025-10-23 |
| 5Y ago | $9.04K (-9.6%) started 2021-10-25 | $3.68K (-63.2%) started 2021-10-25 |
| 10Y ago | $11.43K (+14.3%) started 2017-10-12 | $10.01K (+0.1%) started 2016-10-24 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | CARG | KMX |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $2.7B | $8.81B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 16.11 | 38.58 |
| Forward P/Ei | 10.02 | 20.25 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 2.85 | 0.98 |
| Analyst targeti | $41.27 | $54.85 |
| Target upsidei | +36.30% | -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 | 0.00% | N/A |
| Payout ratioi | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Dividend growth streaki | N/A | N/A |
| Betai | 1.22 | 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 | -12.95% | +19.55% |
| CAGRi | -12.96% | +19.58% | |
| Volatilityi | 39.71% | 52.20% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.26 | 0.53 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.37 | 0.69 | |
| Max drawdowni | 30.92% | 31.50% | |
| Current drawdowni | 19.24% | 19.73% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 12.89% | 10.38% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 15.68% | 12.95% | |
| Max daily dropi | 8.96% | 24.33% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 21.28% | 26.25% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | -9.56% | -63.17% |
| CAGRi | -1.99% | -18.13% | |
| Volatilityi | 50.32% | 44.95% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.12 | -0.31 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.18 | -0.41 | |
| Max drawdowni | 75.38% | 80.06% | |
| Current drawdowni | 34.94% | 66.71% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 41.57% | 52.65% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 45.27% | 54.62% | |
| Max daily dropi | 25.51% | 24.60% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 39.69% | 26.25% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +14.29% | +0.10% |
| CAGRi | +1.49% | +0.01% | |
| Volatilityi | 50.23% | 41.00% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.19 | 0.10 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.27 | 0.14 | |
| Max drawdowni | 78.66% | 80.06% | |
| Current drawdowni | 43.62% | 66.71% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 43.88% | 31.16% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 47.40% | 39.71% | |
| 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. |
Compare more than two at a time
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AI score, forward P/E, analyst target upside, operating margin, and revenue growth are scored head-to-head, with a running tally of which ticker leads on how many metrics.
Volatility, Sharpe and Sortino ratios, maximum, current, and average drawdown, Ulcer Index, and worst single-day and single-week drops across every timeframe.
Pairwise daily-return correlation for every combination, so you can see whether two holdings actually diversify each other or just move together.
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