Investors Rush To Online Car Sellers Due To Lockdown

Reuters reports:



After years of being part of a future that never quite arrived, the coronavirus pandemic has put U.S. online car sellers on the map. Investors are buying in. Vroom’s shares are now trading at more than double their $22 launch price on June 8. Carvana’s market value is near that of No. 2 U.S. automaker Ford Motor Co.

In a sign of the times, an April survey by CarGurus, an online marketplace for new and used cars, found 61% of people shopping for cars were open to buying online. That compares with 32% before the pandemic.

The three main online sellers say they have no interest in new car sales because they are unprofitable and dealer franchise laws make selling across state lines difficult. Of the automakers, only Tesla has avoided franchises and always sold vehicles online.