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Carvana Co.: Q1 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q1 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 29 April 2026: letter to shareholders. Guidance figures: 2 kept. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Retail units up 40% year over year: Retail units sold were 187,393, up from 133,898. The company called it the sixth consecutive quarter of 40% or greater unit growth, while the industry was approximately flat. Source
  • GAAP operating income up $187 million: GAAP operating income was $581 million, up $187 million. Net income was $405 million, a 6.3% net income margin, down from 8.8%. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin 10.4%: Adjusted EBITDA totaled $672 million, a 10.4% margin, down from 11.5% a year earlier. The company listed Adjusted EBITDA among its company records for the quarter. Source
  • Total GPU down $155 to $6,783: Total gross profit per unit was $6,783, down $155. Non-GAAP total GPU was $6,911, down $229 from the prior year. Source
  • Reconditioning costs cut retail GPU: Retail GPU fell $39 on a GAAP basis and $58 on a non-GAAP basis year over year, mainly due to higher reconditioning costs and lower shipping fees. Source
  • Full vehicle lifecycle in under five days: The company completed a full vehicle lifecycle, from one customer's sale to another customer's purchase, in less than 5 days, which management described as a record. Source
  • Labor hours per unit near best level: Labor hours per unit for vehicles produced over the last few weeks were approaching levels just short of the company's all-time best, early in Q2. Source

“The first quarter was another outstanding quarter for Carvana.”

Ernie Garcia, III, Chairman and CEO

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
ADESA integrations Source20266 to 8 existing ADESA sitesKept
Long-term goal Source2030 to 20353 million retail units per year at 13.5% Adjusted EBITDA marginKept

What changed from last quarter

  • New guidance: Management gave a Q2 2026 view of sequential increases in retail units sold and Adjusted EBITDA, assuming a stable environment. Source
  • New: Wholesale GPU will be presented on a consolidated basis, combining Wholesale Vehicle GPU and Wholesale Marketplace GPU, given their increasingly integrated functions. Source
  • New: Wholesale Marketplace operating expenses, $91 per retail unit in Q1 2026, are now reported as Overhead because they are primarily fixed with respect to retail units sold. Source
  • Guidance kept: The fiscal 2026 expectation of significant growth in retail units sold and Adjusted EBITDA is restated from the prior quarter. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Retail units up 40% year over year: Retail units sold were 187,393, up from 133,898. The company called it the sixth consecutive quarter of 40% or greater unit growth, while the industry was approximately flat. Source
  • Revenue up 52% to $6.4 billion: Revenue totaled $6.432 billion, up from $4.232 billion. Retail vehicle sales rose 62% to $4.828 billion, and wholesale sales and revenues rose 24.9% to $1.078 billion. Source
  • GAAP operating income up $187 million: GAAP operating income was $581 million, up $187 million. Net income was $405 million, a 6.3% net income margin, down from 8.8%. Source
  • Adjusted EBITDA margin 10.4%: Adjusted EBITDA totaled $672 million, a 10.4% margin, down from 11.5% a year earlier. The company listed Adjusted EBITDA among its company records for the quarter. Source
  • Diluted EPS of $1.69: Basic and diluted net earnings per Class A share were $1.75 and $1.69, based on 143 million and 148 million Class A shares outstanding, respectively. Source

Costs, margins and unit economics

  • Total GPU down $155 to $6,783: Total gross profit per unit was $6,783, down $155. Non-GAAP total GPU was $6,911, down $229 from the prior year. Source
  • Reconditioning costs cut retail GPU: Retail GPU fell $39 on a GAAP basis and $58 on a non-GAAP basis year over year, mainly due to higher reconditioning costs and lower shipping fees. Source
  • Retail GPU up sequentially: Compared with the prior quarter, retail GPU rose $175 on a GAAP basis and $174 on a non-GAAP basis, even with reconditioning costs still higher year over year. Source
  • SG&A per unit among company records: Total SG&A expense per retail unit was $3,682 GAAP and $3,325 non-GAAP, down from $3,996 and $3,495 a year earlier. Source
  • Total SG&A rose to $690 million: SG&A expense was $690 million, up from $535 million. Advertising was $118 million, up from $72 million, and compensation and benefits were $245 million. Source

“Our Q1 results have again demonstrated our ability to deliver significant profitability at increasing scale as we continue to progress toward achieving our goal”

Ernie Garcia, III, Chairman and CEO

Wholesale and other segments

  • Wholesale vehicle GPU up 31.6%: Wholesale vehicle gross profit per wholesale unit was $1,328, up from $1,009. Wholesale vehicle unit sales rose 31.7% to 83,574. Source
  • Other revenue up 35%: Other sales and revenues were $526 million, up 35.2% from $389 million. Wholesale sales and revenues were $1,078 million, up 24.9%. Source
  • Car sold to dealer in 11 hours: The company bought a car from a customer, listed it on ADESA Clear and sold it to a dealer within 11 hours. Source

Speed and customer experience

  • Full vehicle lifecycle in under five days: The company completed a full vehicle lifecycle, from one customer's sale to another customer's purchase, in less than 5 days, which management described as a record. Source
  • Driveway delivery within two hours: One customer went from starting an order to having the car delivered to their driveway in less than 2 hours. Source
  • Delivery scheduled in two minutes: A customer went from starting an order to scheduling delivery in about 2 minutes, which management tied to intuitive tools, automation and real-time data. Source

“We are continuing to hit records. We are continuing to improve the Carvana machine.”

Ernie Garcia, III, Chairman and CEO

Production capacity and reconditioning

  • Built capacity of 1.5 million units: Fully built out annual capacity is about 1.5 million retail units, with real estate to support annual retail production of 3 million units. Source
  • Carvana and ADESA sites in operation: At Q1 the company had 18 Carvana inspection and reconditioning centers and 16 ADESA integrated sites. Source
  • Shift scheduling moves to central model: Shift scheduling and overtime management are moving from site-level ownership to a centralized model to optimize production across the network. Source
  • Labor hours per unit near best level: Labor hours per unit for vehicles produced over the last few weeks were approaching levels just short of the company's all-time best, early in Q2. Source
  • Investing ahead of growth: Management said it will keep investing in infrastructure ahead of future growth, building excess reconditioning capacity for near-term flexibility. Source

Title and registration

  • Rule-heavy title and registration process: Management described title and registration as fragmented and paper-based, governed by more than 40,000 rule conditions across 50 states, and handled through vertical integration. Source
  • Timely registration near 99%: Investment in these areas gave a timely registration completion rate of about 99%, which management said is substantially higher than industry averages. Source

Capital, cash and liquidity

  • Total liquidity up to $6.9 billion: Total liquidity resources were $6,910 million at March 31, 2026, up from $6,739 million at December 31, 2025, including $2,410 million of cash and cash equivalents. Source
  • Operating cash flow $107 million: Net cash provided by operating activities was $107 million, against $232 million a year earlier. Source
  • Capital spending rose to $51 million: Purchases of property and equipment were $51 million, up from $27 million a year earlier. Source
  • Debt and revolver balances: Long-term debt, excluding the current portion, was $4,846 million, up from $4,830 million. Short-term revolving facilities were $79 million, up from $58 million. Source
  • Tax receivable agreement payments rose: Tax receivable agreement payments were $37 million, up from $17 million a year earlier. Source
  • Share count including LLC unit conversion: Assuming full conversion of LLC units and other dilutive effects, there would have been 226 million Class A shares outstanding. Source

Coming up, as management said on 29 April 2026

  • More benchmarks expected: Management said it expects to keep setting new benchmarks that show how different the Carvana model is. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
Average retail revenue per unit Source$25,764 in Q1 2026, up from $22,256 (15.8%)
Vehicle inventory Source$2,664 million at March 31, 2026, up from $2,408 million at December 31, 2025

Risks management discussed

  • Operational: Management said recent reconditioning labor trends are improving, but further operating refinement is still needed. Source
  • Regulatory: Management said many jurisdictions still depend on paper documentation, wet ink signatures and in-person or mail delivery for title and registration. Source
  • Financial: Net income was reduced by $42 million from changes in the fair value of warrants. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Not stated: Management said it remains firmly on the path to its goal of selling 3 million cars per year at a 13.5% Adjusted EBITDA margin by 2030 to 2035. Source
  • On track: Management said it remains on track for significant growth in retail units sold and Adjusted EBITDA in FY 2026. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.