Giverny Capital recently released its Q1 2020 Investor Letter, a copy of which you can download below. You should check out Giverny Capital’s top 5 stock picks for investors to buy right now, which could be the biggest winners of the stock market crash. There weren’t a lot of funds who could deliver these kinds […]

The FPA New Income fund hasn’t had a negative calendar year since First Pacific Advisors started managing it in 1984

Booking Holdings tops the list Continue reading...

Madison Investments, an independently-owned investment firm, recently published its first-quarter Madison Investors Fund commentary – a copy of which can be downloaded here. During the first quarter of 2020, the Madison Investors Fund returned -20.53%, while the benchmark S&P 500 was down 19.6%. In the said letter, Madison Investments highlighted Carmax Inc (NYSE:KMX), Cdw Corp (NASDAQ:CDW), […]

(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Judging by the number of motor vehicles being stolen in New York City right now, cars have become no less desirable during a lockdown.Burglary rates aren’t a reliable economic indicator, but they’re far from the only sign that car demand could prove more resilient than might appear from recent record sales declines. If unemployment doesn’t surge even higher — a big if — car sales might recover faster than other discretionary purchases, especially if dealerships put in place the right financial incentives and rigorous hygiene measures to reassure customers.   After all, once stay-at-home orders are lifted, we’ll seek to regain personal autonomy while continuing to shield our families from the virus. A car could feel as essential as wearing a face mask.Right now, of course, the industry is reeling: Carmakers are burning cash because production lines are at a standstill, weaker parts suppliers and dealers risk collapse, and banks as well as automakers’ captive finance operations are bracing for a surge in loan defaults. As showrooms have shut their doors across the globe, sales declines have accelerated. April will probably be worse. Restarting production lines after such a prolonged hiatus will also be a huge challenge. Protecting factory employees isn’t straightforward, and cross-border supply chains could cause unexpected complications, particularly if the virus is still spreading widely in some countries. But the outlook for sales isn’t entirely bleak. Car sales have rebounded in China, with dealers surprised at how quickly consumers have returned to showrooms now that travel restrictions have been eased. It makes sense. Commuters who previously took a crowded bus or train may feel uncomfortable doing so for a while. Abandoning mass transit is terrible from an environmental and traffic perspective, but after a public health crisis, people will probably feel safer traveling in their own cars. This doesn’t bode well for car-sharing either, which until recently was another popular low-cost alternative to vehicle ownership. Now it suddenly feels unhygienic. And taking a plane is even more unappealing; if people holiday closer to home this year and next, they may opt to drive rather than fly. Of course, millions of Americans have lost their jobs and won’t be able to make big-ticket purchases in the coming months, especially since those hit hardest were already among the most financially vulnerable. But the premium end of the market may hold up better, particularly as higher-income consumers won’t have as many conflicting pressures on their budgets. Bars, restaurants, hotels, concerts, sporting events and beach resorts all face a more protracted path back to normality if social distancing remains the norm. That’s bound to encourage getting behind the wheel of a car, where physical distancing is sort of the point.  Plus, anyone in the market for a vehicle can expect a bargain: Dealers are offering interest-free financing and loan payment holidays to quickly move inventory and bring in some cash. Customers hunting for a second-hand car may find especially good deals because airport-dependent rental firms have been downsizing their fleets. And driving will be cheaper too, as oil prices have collapsed.  Prospective buyers may soon be offered even more financial goodies. On both sides of the Atlantic there are calls for governments to revive car purchase incentives — known colloquially as “cash for clunkers” — which proved effective at stimulating demand in the last recession. While worth considering, any subsidies should be directed primarily toward hybrid and electric vehicles. Even though the climate crisis may have slipped from our attention, it certainly hasn’t gone away.In Germany, where efforts to curb the virus appear to be bearing fruit, car showrooms will be allowed to reopen soon, even as restaurants remain shut. True, the German car lobby is powerful, but its argument that buying a car can be made as safe, if not safer, than popping over to the supermarket seems reasonable. Dealerships tend to be pretty spacious, and cars parked on the lot can be viewed without entering the premises. There usually aren’t too many customers visiting at the same time.Where dealers remain open, the industry has already come up with some neat ways to keep clients safe. In the U.S., used car retailer CarMax Inc. permits customers to take a test drive without a salesperson sitting next to them, and vehicles are sanitized when someone has touched or sat in them.For the foreseeable future, the new car smell that buyers savor most will be alcohol-based disinfectant. Putting buyers at ease like this could help revive the auto industry and preserve thousands of jobs.This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.Chris Bryant is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering industrial companies. He previously worked for the Financial Times.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinionSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

The largest Insider Buys this week were for Morgan Stanley (MS), Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW), CarMax Inc. (KMX) and Citizens Financial Group Inc. (CFG) Continue reading...

Wedbush analyst Seth Basham talks about how the recovery in car buying will play out, and why he likes AutoZone .

While most of the automakers are reeling under the effects of COVID-19 pandemic, Tesla's (TSLA) Q1 deliveries remain robust and CarMax (KMX) posts a comprehensive beat in fourth-quarter fiscal 2020.

Whenever internet commerce is mentioned, first thoughts often go to Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), the king of all e-commerce. Amazon is not only a great stock to own, but it's also a fearsome competitor. While it was the COVID-19 pandemic that finished that company off, it was internet retail that inflicted much of the damage that weakened it beforehand.

In a statement posted to its investor website, CarMax announced it plans to furlough about 15,500 employees, starting April 18. To further cut costs, Carmax's senior leadership will also take pay cuts, including a 50% salary reduction for Carmax President and CEO Bill Nash. Used car company CarMax has been in a state of barebones operation for several weeks due to the spread of the coronavirus and the COVID-19 pandemic.

CarMax, Inc (NYSE: KMX) seems well-positioned to bounce back and capture market share as the economy emerges from the coronavirus pandemic, according to Wedbush.The CarMax Analyst Seth Basham upgraded CarMax from Neutral to Outperform and raised the price target from $70 to $90.The CarMax Thesis Wedbush's proprietary sales tracker suggests an improvement in CarMax's used unit comps through April to a run rate of negative 38%, Basham said in the Tuesday upgrade note. (See his track record here.)This run rate could improve further to negative 30% as states ease stay-at-home restrictions and more of the company's stores become fully operational, the analyst said. This suggests an estimate of negative 40% for the fiscal first quarter, which is significantly better than the consensus estimate of negative 62%, he said. Referring to the back half of 2020, Basham said that consumer preference for private transport over public alternative will be a positive trend, although the impact may be partially offset by people driving less amid continued work-from-home and social distancing measures.Consumer spending power on discretionary goods is rising due to government stimulus payments and lower spending on travel and entertainment, the analyst said. CarMax is poised to gain share in the used vehicle market, as smaller sellers lack omnichannel capabilities and may crumble as sales decline for an extended period, he said.On the other hand, CarMax is well-positioned in the new environment with several purchase, delivery and contactless pickup options, according to Wedbush. KMX Price Action Shares of CarMax were down 0.78% at $75.37 at the time of publication Wednesday ahead of the close. Related Links:Benzinga's Top Upgrades, Downgrades For May 12, 202010 Biggest Price Target Changes For FridayLatest Ratings for KMX DateFirmActionFromTo May 2020WedbushUpgradesNeutralOutperform Apr 2020WedbushMaintainsNeutral Apr 2020WedbushMaintainsNeutral View More Analyst Ratings for KMX View the Latest Analyst Ratings See more from Benzinga * Tilray Investors Overreacted To A Good Q1 Print, Says Cantor Fitzgerald * ViacomCBS Subscription Numbers Make Barrington Bullish * Agricultural Chemical Companies Had A Good Start To 2020, And BofA Says It's Over(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Here are 5 stocks added to the Zacks Rank 5 (Strong Sell) List today

AutoNation Inc, the largest U.S. auto dealership chain, said on Friday it will return $77 million it received in forgivable loans from the U.S. Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) meant to help struggling small businesses and employees during the coronavirus outbreak. Marc Cannon, a spokesman for the company, told Reuters that AutoNation was "clearly eligible and applied on behalf of the 7,000 employees furloughed caused by the COVID-19 crisis." AutoNation has implemented cost-cutting measures, including temporary pay cuts for staff, curtailing of advertising expenses and postponing over $50 million of capital expenditures through the second quarter of 2020.

AutoNation, the largest U.S. auto dealership chain, said on Friday it will return $77 million it received in forgivable loans from the U.S. Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) meant to help struggling small businesses and employees during the coronavirus outbreak. Marc Cannon, a spokesman for the company, told Reuters that AutoNation was "clearly eligible and applied on behalf of the 7,000 employees furloughed caused by the COVID-19 crisis." AutoNation has implemented cost-cutting measures, including temporary pay cuts for staff, curtailing of advertising expenses and postponing over $50 million of capital expenditures through the second quarter of 2020.

What happened CarMax (NYSE: KMX) stock outperformed a strong market last month by rising 37% compared to a 13% increase in the S&P 500, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. The rally didn't erase wider shareholder losses, though, as the stock remains lower by 19% so far in 2020.

Q4 2020 Carmax Inc Earnings Call

The analysts covering CarMax, Inc. (NYSE:KMX) delivered a dose of negativity to shareholders today, by making a...

CarMax was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Wedbush, which says the company is well-positioned for post-coronavirus sales.

CarMax, Inc. (KMX), the nation’s largest retailer of used cars, today announced new customer offerings amid the COVID-19 pandemic. CarMax also continues to offer home delivery at many open locations, where customers can complete the entire car-buying experience from home and have the vehicle delivered by a CarMax associate. The new CarMax Curbside enables customers to complete the car buying and selling experience while adhering to social distancing practices.

Detroit is reopening, China is rebounding, and two other developments sent auto stocks soaring Monday.