NEW YORK, December 30, 2025, 14:52 ET — Regular session
- Carvana shares were down less than 0.1% at $433.32 in afternoon trading.
- U.S. indexes were largely flat as investors repositioned in holiday-thin volume after the Fed’s December meeting minutes. 1
- Peers were mixed, with CarMax edging up and AutoNation slightly lower.
Carvana Co shares edged lower on Tuesday afternoon, trading down less than 0.1% at $433.32, as year-end portfolio shifts kept risk appetite uneven across consumer names.
The muted move matters because Carvana has become a high-beta momentum stock after a sharp turnaround, and thin holiday volumes can exaggerate day-to-day swings even when headlines are light.
Investors also had fresh Federal Reserve minutes to digest. Rate expectations matter for used-car demand because financing costs influence monthly payments, a key factor for many buyers.
Broader U.S. markets were subdued in choppy trading, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq slightly lower and the Dow marginally down around mid-afternoon, according to Reuters. 1
“It’s just a healthy rebalancing of allocations more so than an emotionally driven sell-off,” said Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide. 1
Carvana traded between an intraday low of $429.42 and a high of $435.49, with volume around 612,000 shares, reflecting a quieter tape than typical for the name.
The stock’s surge this year has raised the stakes for any shift in market mood heading into January, when investors often reset exposures after year-end tax and performance positioning. 2
Carvana remains on watchlists after joining the S&P 500 in late December, a change that can draw steady demand from index-tracking funds and amplify flows during rebalances. 3
Other auto retail names were mixed. CarMax shares were up about 0.4% while AutoNation was down about 0.2%, suggesting the day’s action was more about broader positioning than a single industry read-through.
The Fed minutes referenced a debated decision around a 25-basis-point cut in December — a basis point is 0.01 percentage point — and investors are focused on what that implies for 2026 policy. 1
For Carvana, traders will keep one eye on rates and another on company execution, including volume growth and profitability metrics that have underpinned the stock’s re-rating over the past year.
In the near term, the tape is likely to stay sensitive to year-end liquidity and any follow-through in index moves, with traders watching whether CVNA holds the $429 area after Tuesday’s dip or pushes back through the $435 zone.
