Cars.com Inc. (CARS) Stock: Price, Forecast & Analyst Target
Cars.com Inc. (CARS) — MoonshotScore 54/100 (Fair band), calculated Oct 4, 2026. Price $10.03 (+0.30%), as of the Oct 2, 2026 trading session; market cap $561M.
Educational signal · not a buy or sell recommendation · How to read this
Cars.com Inc. · CARS · NYSE
Cars.com Inc. operates a digital marketplace connecting car shoppers with sellers, offering a range of solutions for the automotive industry. The company's platform showcases dealer inventory, amplifies brands, and empowers shoppers with resources for informed car buying decisions.
Price as of Oct 2, 2026
Key Statistics
MoonshotScore v2 · Cars.com (CARS)
FairWhy this rating? Method, drivers & history
Bands for the MoonshotScore: Exceptional 80-100 · Strong 65-79 · Fair 45-64 · Weak below 45.
- Business Quality — Is this a genuinely good business?
- Financial Safety — Could this blow up on me?
- Valuation — Am I paying a fair price?
- Growth Durability — Is the growth real and likely to last?
- Momentum — Is the market already moving on this?
High quality, a strong balance sheet and durable growth, at a dirt-cheap price — and it’s docked well below the pillars; verify the gap before trusting the setup. Business Quality: Elite; Financial Safety: Sound; Valuation: Cheap; Growth Durability: Compounding; Momentum: Rising.
- quarterly revenue $180M (Q2 FY2026, quarter ended Jun 2026)
- EPS beat 0 of 8
- Altman Z 0.37 · Piotroski F 9
Helping: business quality, balance-sheet strength, an attractive price, durable growth
What has the MoonshotScore done over time?
| Recorded | Score | Band |
|---|---|---|
| 55 | Fair | |
| 56 | Fair | |
| 55 | Fair | |
| 55 | Fair | |
| 55 | Fair | |
| 55 | Fair |
The score was 54 in the stored Oct 3, 2026 snapshot and remains 54 in the current publication computed Oct 4, 2026 (0); the largest pillar moves were Growth Durability -1 and Momentum -1; the pillar moves offset under the sector-relative weighting, so the headline score is unchanged.
Calculation uses the most recent completed US trading session. Live price changes do not update the score immediately.
Computed · Educational signal · not a buy or sell recommendation · How the MoonshotScore is computed →
Price & valuation
| Measure | Value | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Latest provided price | $10.03 | |
| Change on the day | +0.30% | |
| 52-week range | $7.40 – $13.69 | |
| Market capitalisation | $561M | |
| Price / earnings (trailing) | 17.16 | |
| Shares traded on the day | 854.7K |
Price & events
Other perspectives
Council score for Cars.com (CARS): perspectives
Council is a separate blend of available disciplines; MoonshotScore above remains the five-pillar research rating.
5-Factor Breakdown
Legends Council
4 lenses, 0 current
AI simulations built from the named investors' published principles. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or the opinion of these individuals. How these lenses are built
Read on: Sep 18, 2026 · older than the 27 hours refresh window; not a current reading
Munger's Mindset
Balance Sheet & Valuation · historical
Read on: Sep 10, 2026 · older than the 27 hours refresh window; not a current reading
How to read these bars and different assessments
Council is a separate blend of available disciplines; MoonshotScore above remains the five-pillar research rating.
Bars show each model's ordered assessment on its own scale, not a probability or a comparable investment return. The adjacent words give the assessment; more filled segments indicate a stronger model reading.
On Sep 10, 2026, the Munger lens read the price at that time as undervalued against its own estimate of value.
Readings on this page are from Oct 5, 2026, except a card that shows its own read date.
Watch the CARS film — every key number, told as a short cinematic story
~2 min · open the film
What is Cars.com (CARS), and what does it report?
Short answer · as of
A current FMP business description is unavailable; the listing and provider classification below are the available identity facts. Cars.com Inc. (CARS) is listed on NYSE. It employs 1,700 people and is led by Tobias Hartmann. In Q2 FY2026 it reported revenue of $180M and net income of $14M. The market values it at $561M.
What do the latest results show for Cars.com (CARS)?
Short answer · as of
The most recent reported quarter, Q2 FY2026, carried revenue of $180M. Against analyst estimates the company has EPS beat 0 of 8 reports.
Quarterly income statement — 4 quarters
| Period | Revenue | Net income | EPS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 FY2026 | $180M | $14M | $0.25 (diluted) |
| Q1 FY2026 | $180M | $5M | $0.08 (diluted) |
| Q4 FY2025 | $184M | $7M | $0.12 (diluted) |
| Q3 FY2025 | $182M | $8M | $0.12 (diluted) |
What are the financial strengths and risks for Cars.com (CARS)?
Short answer
The MoonshotScore pillars rate business quality, balance-sheet strength, an attractive price, durable growth as strengths. The distress and quality screens read Altman Z 0.37 · Piotroski F 9. Trailing ratios: ROE 5.7% · ROA 2.6% · current ratio 1.87 · earnings yield 4.2% · free-cash-flow yield 25.9%.
Data-derived red flags
- Financial-distress signal — its Altman Z-Score of 0.37 sits in the distress zone (elevated bankruptcy risk).
- Inconsistent delivery — missed Wall Street EPS estimates in 7 of the last 8 reported quarters.
What should you watch next at Cars.com (CARS)?
Short answer · as of
Current published price targets run low $13.00 · high $25.00 · consensus $18.88 · median $18.75 against a quoted price of $10.03 (as of Oct 2, 2026).
What the records here don't tell us
- No forward revenue or earnings estimate is on file.
- The next earnings date is not yet scheduled in the calendar we read.
Checked against the records this page reads, on the dates shown above.
How does Cars.com compare with its peers?
Short answer
Cars.com's score ranks 8th of 13 in the bounded comparison shown, against 12 same-model peers. These are company scores, not expected investment returns. The set lists named competitors first, then companies in the same data-provider industry classification closest in market value; that classification is the provider's, not our judgment of business similarity.
| Company | Price | Market value | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| $19.50 Oct 2, 2026 | $687M | 95 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $18.26 Oct 2, 2026 | $1.00B | 95 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $3.23 Oct 2, 2026 | $883M | 88 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $20.56 Oct 2, 2026 | $595M | 85 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $4.72 Oct 2, 2026 | $770M | 78 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $54.92 Oct 2, 2026 | $7.79B | 55 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $8.50 Oct 2, 2026 | $351M | 55 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| Cars.com (CARS) — this page | $10.03 | $561M | 54 |
| $9.62 Oct 2, 2026 | $510M | 52 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $63.78 Oct 2, 2026 | $70.0B | 48 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $4.68 Oct 2, 2026 | $330M | 47 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $162.46 Oct 2, 2026 | $5.44B | 44 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 | |
| $2.44 Oct 2, 2026 | $944M | 37 5-pillar Oct 4, 2026 |
Only 5-pillar scores are ranked together. Other models are not directly comparable. Price and score dates are shown separately; market-value dates are unavailable.
The records behind this page
Analyst targets & estimates
What analysts have on file
- Price target, low to high
- $13.00 – $25.00
- Consensus target
- $18.88
- Median target
- $18.75
Consensus record · Captured .
Measured against a quoted price of $10.03 (as of Oct 2, 2026).
Insider activity
Form 4 records via FMP · Available records within the last 180 days, newest dated Aug 20, 2026 (coverage not recorded)
- Transactions
- 11
- Identified insiders
- 9
- Purchases
- 0
- Sales
- 4
- Other transactions
- 7
Purchases and sales use the reported transaction category. Other transactions include awards, exercises, gifts, withholding and unclassified activity; an acquisition or disposition alone is not a purchase or sale. These records do not establish intent.
What has been published about Cars.com (CARS)?
Cars.com Stock: Key Questions Answered
These answers are editorial: 1 of these 9 answers is drawn from the CARS research dossier (written May 10, 2026 by gemini-2.0-flash); the other 8 are question templates that restate figures shown above. Figures in this section are not part of the source register.
What does the MoonshotScore mean for CARS?
CARS carries the MoonshotScore stated above — the Fair band. This is an educational research signal, not a buy or sell recommendation. The number comes from the five-pillar engine (business quality, financial safety, valuation, growth durability, momentum), re-ranked daily against sector peers.
Is CARS a good stock to buy?
Stock Expert AI does not rate CARS buy, sell or hold. Cars.com Inc. carries a MoonshotScore, in the Fair band, a research rating against its peers rather than a forecast. Whether it fits is your call: check what it sells, whether it earns and what the price assumes. This is educational content, not investment advice.
What is the CARS stock price today?
The last price recorded on this page for Cars.com Inc. (CARS) is $10.03, as of the Oct 2, 2026 trading session (source: Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · quote). It is a provider snapshot, not a live exchange feed, so check a brokerage quote before you trade.
What is the CARS price target?
The analyst consensus price target for Cars.com Inc. (CARS) is $18.88 (range $13.00 to $25.00, median $18.75), per FMP data captured Oct 4, 2026. Targets are analyst opinions and change often; they are not a Stock Expert AI forecast.
What are the main risks for CARS?
The main risks for Cars.com Inc. include increased competition from other online automotive marketplaces, which could erode market share and impact revenue growth.
What are the key factors to evaluate for CARS?
Cars.com Inc. (CARS) holds a MoonshotScore in the moderate range. P/E: 17.16x. Analysts target $18.88 (+88%). Development of In-Market Audio Services: The company can expand its advertising solutions by offering in-market audio services, targeting car shoppers while they are actively researching and considering purchases. Not financial advice.
How frequently does CARS data refresh on this page?
CARS's price is the last quote we recorded, from the Oct 2, 2026 trading session. Pages are served from a cache, so the copy you are reading can lag that quote. The quote is a provider snapshot, not an exchange feed. Fundamentals follow quarterly filings. V2 is recalculated from the most recent completed US trading session; the score's own date shows its last successful run.
What has driven CARS's recent stock price performance?
Cars.com Inc. (CARS) moves on earnings results, analyst revisions, sector rotation, and market sentiment. Notable catalyst: Established digital marketplace with a large network of dealers. See the News tab for the latest drivers. Past performance does not predict future results.
Should investors consider CARS overvalued or undervalued right now?
Cars.com Inc. (CARS) trades at 17.16x earnings. Analysts target $18.88 (+88%) — upside seen. Compare P/E, P/S, and EV/EBITDA against sector peers for a full view.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a financial advisor.
Machine-generated analysis by Stock Expert AI — model gemini-2.0-flash, generated May 10, 2026. Editorial oversight is systemic, not page-by-page. Editorially accountable: Sedat ANAK, Founder and Editor-in-Chief.
Sources — records for every figure on this page (22 figures)
The 22 rows below are exactly the facts the evidence-backed sections of this page printed — the 10-second verdict, the MoonshotScore, price and market value, the five questions with their receipts, and the records behind this page. Known dates and sources are recorded on their own rows; an em dash or UNRECORDED tier preserves a stored observation without inventing either. The quarterly income statement is provider-standardized (FMP) under one row, and scale definitions — a 0-100 rating, the band ladder, the Piotroski 0–9 range — are fixed rather than measured. No number in those sections was generated by a model. The register does not cover quoted third-party headlines, the dated council readings, or the Frequently Asked Questions; each of those says where it came from where it stands.
"As of" is the date the value is true for where the source carries one — a quarter end, a filing date, a price close, the day the score was computed. A cached observation with no source date remains undated; the page publication date is not used as a substitute.
FMP — 14 facts from Financial Modeling Prep endpoint families
| Fact ID | Fact | Value as shown | As of | Tier | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
px.last | Latest provided price | $10.03 | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · quote — Dated to the US trading session the price belongs to, derived from the quote record's timestamp (weekend and pre-open reads roll back to the previous weekday; exchange holidays are not modelled). The record does not establish an exchange execution time. Retrieved 2026-10-04T19:24:35.517Z. | |
px.change | Change on the day | +0.30% | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · quote | |
px.mcap | Market capitalisation | $561M | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · quote — Date unknown Market cap record date: 2026-10-02. FMP quote timestamp: 2026-10-02T20:00:02.000Z. Captured from FMP at 2026-10-04T19:24:34.499Z. No share-count basis is inferred; this page preserves the reported amount instead of recalculating it from shares. | |
px.change_abs | Change on the day, in dollars | +$0.03 | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · quote | |
fin.q_revenue | Revenue, Q2 FY2026 | $180M | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · income statement (quarterly) | |
px.pe | Price / earnings (trailing) | 17.16 | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · quote | |
px.volume | Shares traded on the day | 854.7K | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · quote | |
fin.q_income | Net income, Q2 FY2026 | $14M | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · income statement (quarterly) | |
fin.q_table | Quarterly income statement | 4 quarters through Q2 FY2026 | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · income statement (quarterly), as filed | |
earn.pt | Stored analyst price targets | low $13.00 · high $25.00 · consensus $18.88 · median $18.75 | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · price-target consensus — Captured Oct 4, 2026 · Coverage not supplied | |
earn.pt_range | Analyst price target, low to high | $13.00 – $25.00 | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · price-target consensus — Captured Oct 4, 2026 · Coverage not supplied | |
earn.pt_consensus | Consensus analyst price target | $18.88 | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · price-target consensus — Captured Oct 4, 2026 · Coverage not supplied | |
earn.pt_median | Median analyst price target | $18.75 | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) · price-target consensus — Captured Oct 4, 2026 · Coverage not supplied | |
own.insiders | Insider transactions via FMP | 11 transactions · 0 purchases, 4 sales, 7 other transactions · 9 identified insiders · available records within the last 180 days, newest dated Aug 20, 2026 (coverage not recorded) | FMP | Financial Modeling Prep (FMP), carrying Form 4 transaction records — Purchases and sales use the reported transaction category. Other transactions include awards, exercises, gifts, withholding and unclassified activity; an acquisition or disposition alone is not a purchase or sale. These records do not establish intent. |
UNRECORDED — 6 facts from stored observations whose source was not recorded
| Fact ID | Fact | Value as shown | As of | Tier | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
earn.history | Reported versus estimated, recent quarters | EPS beat 0 of 8 | UNRECORDED | Stored earnings-history observation — Captured 2026-09-29 · Expired observation | |
fin.scores | Distress and quality screens | Altman Z 0.37 · Piotroski F 9 | UNRECORDED | Stored financial-scores observation — Captured 2026-10-04 | |
px.range52 | 52-week range | $7.40 – $13.69 | UNRECORDED | Stored company-profile observation — Captured 2026-09-29 | |
id.employees | Employees | 1,700 | UNRECORDED | Stored company-profile observation — Captured 2026-09-29 | |
id.ceo | Chief executive | Tobias Hartmann | UNRECORDED | Stored company-profile observation — Captured 2026-09-29 | |
fin.ratios | Return and yield ratios (trailing twelve months) | ROE 5.7% · ROA 2.6% · current ratio 1.87 · earnings yield 4.2% · free-cash-flow yield 25.9% | — | UNRECORDED | Stored key metrics — Date unknown |
OURS — 2 facts from Stock Expert AI's own score and rank
| Fact ID | Fact | Value as shown | As of | Tier | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ours.moonshot | MoonshotScore v2 | 54 of 100 · Fair · pillars 85 / 72 / 89 / 84 / 60 | OURS | Stock Expert AI MoonshotScore v2 engine | |
ours.moonshot_change | MoonshotScore movement | 54 (stored snapshot Oct 3, 2026) → 54 (current publication computed Oct 4, 2026) (0) | OURS | Stock Expert AI current score publication and immutable score snapshots |
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