Online used-vehicle retailer Carvana Co., after grappling with multiple net losses and deteriorated market conditions in 2022, moves into 2023 focused on bolstering gross profit per vehicle.
To help readers follow the developments at Carvana, we're compiling our ongoing coverage of the company in one organized timeline.
We will continue to closely watch Carvana, its stock price and financial status and will plan to update this timeline with future news stories about the retailer.
Feb. 24. 2022: Carvana announces a plan to buy the ADESA U.S. physical auction business from wholesale auction company KAR Global. The transaction price is about $2.2 billion.
April 20: Carvana says it sold fewer vehicles than it had planned at lower profits per vehicle in a "challenging" first quarter that produced a $506 million net loss, more than six times its loss in the year-earlier period.
April 25: Carvana's pending acquisition of ADESA U.S. prompts some automakers and dealers to rethink or sever their relationships with the No. 2 U.S. auction house.
April 27: Apollo Global Management Inc. offers to buy $1.6 billion, or roughly half, of a junk-bond sale that Carvana offered to help finance its acquisition of ADESA U.S.
May 10: Carvana wraps up its purchase of ADESA U.S. The company says the acquisition, which includes 56 sites across the nation, will give it the ability to process far more cars and trucks and get them ready for retail.
Illinois suspends Carvana's license to sell vehicles in the state. A state official says Carvana needs to resolve problems with how it transfers vehicle titles and issues out-of-state temporary registration permits before its license can be reinstated.
May 10-13: Carvana discloses that it will cut 2,500 operations jobs in an effort to right-size the company. The news triggers a stock sell-off and employee backlash. The next few months will be crucial for Carvana and its online retailing brethren to contain expenses and curb losses, analysts say.
May 26: Illinois stays its May 10 order for Carvana to suspend its vehicle sales in the state. The Illinois Secretary of State’s office says Carvana can keep selling as long as it complies with “strict guidelines.”
July 18: Illinois reinstates its suspension of Carvana’s license to sell cars in the state after the Illinois Secretary of State’s office said Carvana failed to follow proper procedures.
July 29: An Illinois judge issued a temporary restraining order against the Secretary of State's office, preventing the agency from "suspending or revoking" Carvana's certificates of authority and dealer plates.
Aug. 4: Carvana said it posted a net loss of $439 million in the quarter ending June 30 — a far cry from its landmark $45 million profit one year ago but smaller than its $506 million first-quarter loss.
Sept. 12: Carvana and Illinois are "in discussions" about company's license to sell used-vehicles in the state.
Sept. 26: Paul Breaux, Carvana Co.'s general counsel, faces dozens of criminal charges in Illinois for the company’s alleged motor vehicle titling, registration and records-keeping violations in the state. Charges against him were filed in May, and Breaux has been ordered to appear in court Nov. 1.
Oct. 7: State regulators suspend license at Carvana's Novi, Mich., location for repeated violations covering titles, registrations and odometers, following an investigation of multiple no-title complaints from consumers.
Oct. 12: Carvana urged its Michigan customers to sign an online petition supporting the retailer's business practices. "We believe Carvana is being singled out in order to protect antiquated paperwork and legal requirements that we don't feel are in the best interest of customers," the email to customers said.
Oct. 13: Carvana goes to court in Michigan seeking to reverse its lost license. Carvana, in court filings, said it was forced to cease all in-state Michigan sales, which it said has delayed scheduled deliveries to 48 customers.
Oct. 20: A Michigan judge denies Carvana's request for an injunction against the state that would have blocked the suspension.
Nov. 3: Carvana posts a third-quarter net loss of $508 million.
Nov. 8: Shares in Carvana hit an all-time low of $6.50 a share.
Nov. 10: Pennsylvania regulators suspended two Carvana locations in the commonwealth from performing motor vehicle titling and registration actions, meaning the Carvana outlets are temporarily blocked from handling the titling and registration matters though they can continue to sell vehicles. The regulators cited Carvana for administrative contract violations, according to a spokesman for the regulatory agency.
Nov. 17: Carvana CEO Ernie Garcia reflects on the company’s performance in 2022 during a video teleconference at Used Car Week and says it’s been a tough year.
Nov. 18: Carvana announces it will cut 1,500 jobs, or 8 percent of its workforce, amid slowing used-car demand.
Nov. 22: Some analysts who cover Carvana issue lower share price targets for the company, citing weakening economic conditions and its grim financial outlook, which includes a heavy debt load.
Dec. 2022: Some of Carvana biggest creditors including Apollo Global Management and Pacific Investment Management sign a pact binding them to act together in talks with the struggling used-vehicle retailer, a move meant to prevent the kind of nasty creditor fights that have complicated other debt restructurings in recent years.
Jan. 11, 2023: Carvana agrees to surrender its dealer license in Michigan, settling the regulatory challenge brought against it by the state in October 2022. Carvana can sell vehicles to Michigan residents via its website, but it is barred from reapplying for a dealer license in the state for three years.
Late Jan. 2023: Carvana shares rise in reaction to slightly improved used-vehicle demand and unseasonably higher wholesale prices.
Feb. 23: Carvana reports its fourth-quarter and full-year 2022 earnings results.
Click here for Carvana's current stock price.
