(CARS) – Cars.com Clocks 3% Revenue Growth In Q4; Plans $200M Buyback
- Automotive marketplace platform Cars.com Inc (NYSE: CARS) reported fourth-quarter FY21 revenue growth of 3% year-on-year to $158.30 million, marginally missing the consensus of $158.37 million.
- Average Monthly Unique Visitors improved 6% Y/Y to 23.6 million. Traffic (Visits) of 134.0 million dropped 3% Y/Y.
- Monthly Average Revenue Per Dealer of $2,333 was up 3% Y/Y, driven by continued growth in FUEL and digital solutions.
- Dealer revenue grew 8% Y/Y, driven by dealer customers and ARPD. OEM and national revenue were 23% lower Y/Y.
- The adjusted EBITDA margin contracted 200 bps to 30%.
- The company reported EPS loss of $(0.09) versus $0.10 prior year.
- Cars.com held $39.1 million in cash and equivalents and generated $21.8 million in operating cash flow.
- Share Buyback: Cars.com announced a $200 million share repurchase program.
- “We achieved double-digit Revenue and Adjusted EBITDA growth this year, by driving continued adoption of our superior digital solutions across the industry,” said Alex Vetter, CEO.
- Outlook: Cars.com sees Q1 FY22 revenue of $156.5 million – $158.5 million, below the consensus of $160.8 million, reflecting the impact of industry-wide inventory shortages on advertising budgets, particularly for OEMs.
- The company forecasts FY22 revenue growth of 6% – 8%, with double-digit revenue growth in Q4, assuming inventory shortages have recovered in the second half.
- The company expects Q1 Adjusted EBITDA margin to be 26% – 28% and to approach 30% in Q4.
- Price Action: CARS shares traded lower by 1.80% at $14.15 on the last check Thursday.
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