Carvana Careens Offroad After Hindenburg Research Accuses Company of Fraud
2024 was a fantastic, fiery trainwreck of a year for companies on the wrong side of famed short-seller Hindenburg Research. They attacked India’s richest man, blew one of America’s best-performing AI trades sky-high, and accused one nursing giant of scamming taxpayers. But despite its namesake’s reputation in the air, Hindenburg has somewhat of a reputation for foreseeing slow-motion car crashes — see Nikola, Lordstown Motors, and now, online car dealer Carvana. Last year, stock rose more than 284%, allowing the business to skirt away from bankruptcy worries. Alas, Hindenburg says its comeback story is simply too good to be true.
- Hindenburg claims in a new report that Carvana’s turnaround is a mirage, accusing it of accounting manipulation, related-party transactions, and other serious fraud.
- The digital dealership’s largest shareholder — Ernie Garcia II, the father of company CEO Ernie Garcia III — has engaged in accounting fraud before and is accused of helping cook Carvana’s books while dumping billions in stock.
The Carvana concern: Cumulatively, Carvana’s shares have risen more than 3,000% since their near-death experience in 2022, with the wheelhouse touting its strong performance and valuation surpassing $40B. That’s at odds with a used car market grinding to a halt and facing more delinquencies than during the Great Recession. Worse, if Hindenburg’s findings are true, it means that Carvana could very well be doomed. Hindenburg states, “We think the Garcias will leave shareholders with nothing.” Carvana and the Garcias have not responded to the accusations.
