CARS on NYSE

cars.com

Logo: The logo is from the following website: www.cars.com www.cars.com, Non-free logo, via Wikipedia4

Automotive classified website

Cars.com is an automotive classified website focused on the United States that launched in June 1998 and now is the second largest automotive classified site. It is also known for being the most expensive domain ever sold.3 From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Price unavailable

Last updated Oct 18, 2026.

Overview

1998Founded1

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  • TickerCARS on NYSE1
  • IndustryServices-Computer Processing & Data Preparation1
  • HeadquartersChicago1
  • Websitewww.cars.com
  • Incorporated inDE5
  • Business address300 S. Riverside Plaza, Suite 1000, Chicago, Il 606065
  • Filer categoryLarge accelerated filer5

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Cars.com is an automotive classified website focused on the United States that launched in June 1998 and now is the second largest automotive classified site. It is also known for being the most expensive domain ever sold. It was sold in 2014 for $872 million Its headquarters are located in Chicago, Illinois. Cars.com also offers expert car reviews, news and research from its dedicated Editorial team.3

Financials

From the company’s reports to the SEC. Every number links to the filing it came from.

Key numbers, fiscal 2025

8.3%Operating margin7
2.8%Net margin7
0.6%Revenue growth, 20257
4.2%Return on equity7
0.96×Debt to equity7
$147.4MFree cash flow7

Where the money goes

Where each dollar of revenue went, fiscal 2025

  • Other costs95¢$688.9M
  • Income tax2¢$14.3M
  • Profit3¢$20.1M

Out of $723.2M in revenue.7

Where each dollar of operating cash went, fiscal 2025

  • Capital spending3¢$4.3M
  • Share buybacks57¢$86.9M
  • Kept or used elsewhere40¢$60.4M

Out of $151.6M of cash from operations.7

Financial statements

Revenue8910117$723.2M in 2025+19% since 2019
0$200.0M$400.0M$600.0M$800.0M2019: $606.7M$606.7M20192020: $547.5M$547.5M2020−10%2021: $623.7M$623.7M2021+14%2022: $653.9M$653.9M2022+5%2023: $689.2M$689.2M2023+5%2024: $719.2M$719.2M2024+4%2025: $723.2M$723.2M2025+1%
Operating income8910117$60.2M in 2025
-$1.0B-$750.0M-$500.0M-$250.0M0$250.0M2019: -$446.1M-$446.1M20192020: -$887.3M-$887.3M2020+99%2021: $48.3M$48.3M20212022: $66.0M$66.0M2022+37%2023: $54.1M$54.1M2023−18%2024: $53.5M$53.5M2024−1%2025: $60.2M$60.2M2025+13%
Net income8910117$20.1M in 2025
-$1.0B-$750.0M-$500.0M-$250.0M0$250.0M2019: -$445.3M-$445.3M20192020: -$789.1M-$789.1M2020+77%2021: $10.8M$10.8M20212022: $17.2M$17.2M2022+59%2023: $118.4M$118.4M2023+588%2024: $48.2M$48.2M2024−59%2025: $20.1M$20.1M2025−58%
Fiscal year2019202020212022202320242025
Revenue$606.7M8$547.5M9$623.7M10$653.9M11$689.2M7$719.2M7$723.2M7
Cost of revenue
Operating income-$446.1M8-$887.3M9$48.3M10$66.0M11$54.1M7$53.5M7$60.2M7
Income tax-$30.0M8-$147.3M9-$1.3M10$5.4M11-$100.3M7$13.7M7$14.3M7
Net income-$445.3M8-$789.1M9$10.8M10$17.2M11$118.4M7$48.2M7$20.1M7
Earnings per share-$6.658-$11.749$0.1610$0.2511$1.777$0.737$0.327
Earnings per share (diluted)-$6.658-$11.749$0.1510$0.2511$1.747$0.727$0.327

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The story

A 2003 Library Journal survey of automobile-related websites described cars.com as ranked the site positively, noting staff-written reviews that are signed, dated, detailed, and illustrated. In 2004 the website announced a partnership with Kelley Blue Book and commenced national advertising. In October 2007, it announced plans for its largest marketing campaign ever in early 2008. In the same month, Yahoo! announced plans to receive listings from Cars.com for their Yahoo! Autos service.

Cars.com was previously owned by Classified Ventures, LLC, a joint venture between Gannett, The McClatchy Company, Tribune, Graham Holdings, and A.H. Belo. On August 5, 2014, Gannett announced that it would buy out the remaining stakes in Classified Ventures it did not already own, for $2.5 billion.

In July 2016, Cars.com acquired dealer and service shop rating site DealerRater.

Cars.com was included in the spin-off of Gannett's broadcasting properties as Tegna, Inc. On May 4, 2017, Tegna shareholders approved a plan to spin off Cars.com as a new, publicly traded company; they received a share of the new company, which began trading on the NYSE beginning on June 1, 2017, for every 3 Tegna shares they owned.

In February 2018, Cars.com announced the acquisition of Dealer Inspire, a digital marketing agency serving automotive dealerships located in Naperville, Illinois.

From Wikipedia’s article on Cars.com, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.6

Leadership

Who has led cars.com, and when. Pick a name to see everywhere that person has worked.

Chief executive

  1. Thomas Alex Vetter2017–2025
  2. Tobias Hartmann2025–now

President

  1. Thomas Alex Vetter2017–2021

Chief financial officer

  1. Becky A. Sheehan2017–2020
  2. Jeanette Tomy2020–2022
  3. Sonia Jain2020–now
200020052010201520202025
Board members and other officers (16)

Products and brands

Cars.com has regularly advertised during the Super Bowl, screening adverts in consecutive years.

From Wikipedia’s article on Cars.com, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.6

Subsidiaries and ownership

Former owners and parents

From Wikidata.1

Timeline

  1. Dec 29, 2025New chief executive Tobias Hartmann becomes CEO15
  2. May 12, 2017New chief executive Thomas Alex Vetter becomes CEO16
  3. 1998Founded Founded1

Filings

289 filings to the SEC since October 2021: 5 annual reports, 15 quarterly reports, 36 major events, 150 insider forms, 26 large holders, 57 other. The latest 20:

  1. Oct 8, 2026SCHEDULE 13G/A EDGAR
  2. Sep 30, 20268-K EDGAR
  3. Aug 24, 20264 EDGAR
  4. Aug 20, 2026144 EDGAR
  5. Aug 19, 20264 EDGAR
  6. Aug 17, 2026144 EDGAR
  7. Aug 6, 202610-Q EDGAR
  8. Aug 6, 20268-K EDGAR
  9. Jun 15, 20264 EDGAR
  10. Jun 12, 2026144 EDGAR
  11. Jun 11, 2026144 EDGAR
  12. Jun 9, 20264 EDGAR
  13. Jun 9, 20264 EDGAR
  14. Jun 9, 20264 EDGAR
  15. Jun 9, 20264 EDGAR
  16. Jun 9, 20264 EDGAR
  17. Jun 9, 20264 EDGAR
  18. Jun 9, 20264 EDGAR
  19. Jun 5, 20268-K EDGAR
  20. May 8, 2026SCHEDULE 13G/A EDGAR

The 289 filings since October 2021 can be filtered by form type and year here when JavaScript is on.

Every filing from the last three years, summarized. The full record is on SEC EDGAR.

Insider trades and holders

Large holders

Investors who own more than 5% must tell the SEC: a 13D if they may seek to influence the company, a 13G if they hold passively. 26 such filings since October 2021, the latest 10:

  1. Oct 8, 2026SCHEDULE 13G/A
  2. May 8, 2026SCHEDULE 13G/A
  3. Apr 7, 2026SCHEDULE 13G/A
  4. Mar 26, 2026SCHEDULE 13G/A
  5. Mar 6, 2026SCHEDULE 13G
  6. Jan 30, 2026SCHEDULE 13G/A
  7. Jul 15, 2025SCHEDULE 13G
  8. Nov 14, 2024SC 13G/A
  9. May 3, 2024SCHEDULE 13G/A
  10. Feb 14, 2024SC 13G/A

From Forms 4 and Schedules 13D and 13G filed with the SEC.

Held by these funds

The largest holders among investment managers' 13F reports for the quarter ending Jun 30, 2026, the top 25 of 100. Change is in shares since the quarter before.

FundSharesValueShare of the fundChange
Fmr LLC8,384,750$91.7M0.0%−409,772
BlackRock, Inc.4,169,181$45.6M0.0%−136,895
Pale Fire Capital SE4,008,218$43.8M3.1%+51,600
Dimensional Fund Advisors LP3,352,529$36.7M0.0%−48,994
Hill Path Capital LP2,481,032$27.1M1.4%No change
Brown Advisory Inc2,370,732$25.9M0.0%−27,598
Vanguard Capital Management LLC2,339,620$25.6M0.0%−135,283
Breach Inlet Capital Management, LLC2,197,445$24.0M8.0%+73,261
American Century Companies Inc2,139,090$23.4M0.0%+325,762
Jpmorgan Chase & Co1,577,389$17.6M0.0%+50,096
State Street Corp1,403,690$15.4M0.0%−65,255
Geode Capital Management, LLC1,272,400$13.9M0.0%−54,214
Two Sigma Investments, LP1,199,978$13.1M0.0%+1,052,691
Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc903,295$9.9M0.0%−21,433
Dana Investment Advisors, Inc.855,624$9.4M0.2%+143,374
Morgan Stanley852,512$9.3M0.0%+115,170
Jane Street Group, LLC844,734$9.2M0.0%−127,699
Northern Trust Corp647,571$7.1M0.0%+14,667
Citadel Advisors LLC606,921$6.6M0.0%+66,671
LPL Financial LLC551,540$6.0M0.0%+35,513
Vanguard Portfolio Management LLC551,222$6.0M0.0%−15,475
Nordea Investment Management Ab481,557$5.3M0.0%−5,314
D. E. Shaw & Co., Inc.473,556$5.2M0.0%+125,881
Axxion S.A.396,105$4.3M0.3%New
Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.376,042$4.1M0.1%−101,293

13F reports cover disclosed long positions in U.S. stocks only.

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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