Welcome to today's edition of the Daily 5.
Not long ago, Carvana Co. faced mounting existential problems on multiple fronts — regulatory fights in multiple states, job cuts, red ink and tanking stock prices. It hemorrhaged nearly $1.6 billion in 2022 and its stock traded in the single digits.
Fast forward several months and the innovative online auto retailer, with its can't-miss vending machines throughout the U.S., generates solid profits and its shares trade in the $170s.
Carvana today said it hit a benchmark of 4 million vehicles bought and sold since it launched in 2013, as our C.J. Moore reports.
CEO Ernie Garcia, who steered this company through its rise, fall and rise again, summed it up with this statement today: "Buying or selling a car online is no longer a niche experience reserved for early adopters. It is a mainstream, growing preference for people of all stripes across the country."
Several other stories are percolating today.
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares, under fire for the company's lagging U.S. sales, said it's too early to commit to the company's dividend payouts in 2025. Tavares, 66, also said he's committed to staying in the job until his contract expires in early 2026. "I signed a contract," he said, according to Bloomberg.
In some good news for Stellantis, the company scored well on the annual Rainbow PUSH Coalition Automotive Diversity Scorecard. Along with Toyota, Stellantis achieved the highest marks in all six categories of the report.
Meanwhile, Tesla issued the fifth U.S. recall for its polarizing Cybertruck, this time for a delayed backup camera display.
In another report today, Tesla plans to design four new in-house batteries for the Cybertruck, its upcoming robotaxi and other EVs, The Information reported.
Looking ahead to tomorrow, we'll have a preview of The Battery Show in Detroit running from Oct. 7-10. This event is expanding rapidly and promises to generate a lot of news next week.
That's it for now. Have a great rest of your day.
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— Philip Nussel, online editor
