As the craze of earnings season draws to a close, here's a look back at some of the most exciting (and some less so) results from Q4. Today we are looking at the online marketplace stocks, starting with Cars.com (NYSE:CARS).
Marketplaces have existed for centuries. Where once it was a main street in a small town or a mall in the suburbs, sellers benefitted from proximity to one another because they could draw customers by offering convenience and selection. Today, a myriad of online marketplaces fulfill that same role, aggregating large customer bases, which attracts commission-paying sellers, generating flywheel scale effects that feed back into further customer acquisition.
The 12 online marketplace stocks we track reported a slower Q4; on average, revenues beat analyst consensus estimates by 1.2% while next quarter's revenue guidance was 3.7% below consensus. Stocks have faced challenges as investors prioritize near-term cash flows, but online marketplace stocks held their ground better than others, with the share prices up 12.8% on average since the previous earnings results.
Cars.com (NYSE:CARS)
Originally started as a joint venture between several media companies including The Washington Post and The New York Times, Cars.com (NYSE:CARS) is a digital marketplace that connects new and used car buyers and sellers.
Cars.com reported revenues of $179.6 million, up 6.8% year on year, in line with analyst expectations. It was a mixed quarter for the company, with a narrow beat of analysts' revenue estimates but slow revenue growth. Its revenue guidance for next quarter fell short, but it expects to generate higher adjusted EBITDA margins than expected (28% vs estimates of 27%).
"2023 marked a year of significant progress. We advanced our platform strategy through the introduction of Cars Commerce, the rollout of our Marketplace Repackaging initiative and our expansion into Canada with the acquisition of D2C Media. Our focus on simplifying everything about buying and selling cars enabled us to continue to deliver value for consumers, dealers, and OEMs, supporting our twelve consecutive quarters of year-over-year profitable revenue growth," said Alex Vetter, Chief Executive Officer of Cars Commerce.
The stock is down 7.6% since the results and currently trades at $16.68.
Read our full report on Cars.com here, it's free.
Best Q4: MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI)
Originally started as an online auction platform, MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) is a one-stop e-commerce marketplace and fintech platform in Latin America.
MercadoLibre reported revenues of $4.26 billion, up 41.9% year on year, outperforming analyst expectations by 2.8%. It was an impressive quarter for the company. MercadoLibre's robust user growth enabled it to beat analysts' revenue, total payment volume (TPV), and gross merchandise volume (GMV) estimates.
MercadoLibre achieved the fastest revenue growth among its peers. The company reported 145 million daily active users, up 49.5% year on year. The stock is down 16.3% since the results and currently trades at $1,525.
Is now the time to buy MercadoLibre? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free.
Weakest Q4: Shutterstock (NYSE:SSTK)
Originally featuring a library that included many of founder Jon Oringer’s photos, Shutterstock (NYSE:SSTK) is now a digital platform where customers can license and use hundreds of millions of pieces of content.
Shutterstock reported revenues of $217.2 million, down 0.2% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 3%. It was a weak quarter for the company, with full-year revenue guidance missing analysts' expectations and a decline in its user base.
Shutterstock had the weakest performance against analyst estimates and weakest full-year guidance update in the group. The company reported 523,000 users, down 10.8% year on year. The stock is up 1.7% since the results and currently trades at $45.21.
Read our full analysis of Shutterstock's results here.
Remitly (NASDAQ:RELY)
With Amazon founder Jeff Bezos as an early investor, Remitly (NASDAQ:RELY) is an online platform that enables consumers to safely and quickly send money globally.
Remitly reported revenues of $264.8 million, up 38.6% year on year, surpassing analyst expectations by 1.3%. It was a very strong quarter for the company, with impressive growth in its user base and exceptional revenue growth.
Remitly delivered the highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The company reported 5.9 million active buyers, up 40.5% year on year. The stock is up 15.9% since the results and currently trades at $20.5.
Read our full, actionable report on Remitly here, it's free.
Teladoc (NYSE:TDOC)
Founded to help people in rural areas get online medical consultations, Teladoc Health (NYSE:TDOC) is a telemedicine platform that facilitates remote doctor’s visits.
Teladoc reported revenues of $660.5 million, up 3.6% year on year, falling short of analyst expectations by 1.6%. It was a weak quarter for the company, with full-year revenue guidance missing analysts' expectations.
The company reported 89.6 million users, up 7.6% year on year. The stock is down 30.3% since the results and currently trades at $14.3.
Read our full, actionable report on Teladoc here, it's free.
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