Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) versus Caleres (NYSE:CAL) Head to Head Review

Carvana (NYSE:CVNA) and Caleres (NYSE:CAL) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, profitability, risk, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Risk and Volatility

Carvana has a beta of 3.66, indicating that its share price is 266% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Caleres has a beta of 0.71, indicating that its share price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Carvana and Caleres, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Carvana	0	8	16	1	2.72
Caleres	0	3	0	0	2.00

Carvana presently has a consensus price target of $82.09, suggesting a potential upside of 12.77%. Given Carvana’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Carvana is more favorable than Caleres.

Profitability

This table compares Carvana and Caleres’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Carvana	6.21%	34.77%	12.03%
Caleres	1.85%	7.84%	2.42%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Carvana and Caleres”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Carvana	$20.32 billion	3.95	$1.41 billion	$1.99	36.58
Caleres	$2.85 billion	0.16	-$6.69 million	$1.50	8.81

Carvana has higher revenue and earnings than Caleres. Caleres is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Carvana, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

56.7% of Carvana shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.4% of Caleres shares are held by institutional investors. 15.2% of Carvana shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.1% of Caleres shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Carvana beats Caleres on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Carvana

Carvana Co. operates an online platform for buying and selling used cars. Customers can browse vehicle listings, arrange financing, value a trade-in, and complete much of the purchase process online. The company also offers vehicle delivery or pickup, including at some locations with its distinctive car vending machines. Founded in 2012, Carvana has expanded its operations across the United States. Its services and vehicle availability vary by market, and the company supports its online marketplace with inspection, reconditioning, and logistics operations.

About Caleres

Caleres is a footwear company that designs, develops, sources, markets and sells shoes through retail stores, e-commerce and wholesale partnerships. Its brands include Famous Footwear, Allen Edmonds, Sam Edelman, Naturalizer and Vionic, serving customers across a range of styles and price points. The company operates Famous Footwear, a retailer of family footwear, and sells branded products through its own stores and online channels as well as through department stores and other retailers. Caleres serves customers primarily in the United States, with its brands also distributed in international markets.