Vroom Inc. reported an almost doubling in retail unit sales along with a wider first-quarter net loss.
The online used-vehicle retailer’s e-commerce unit sales grew 96 percent to a record 15,504 in the period. Wholesale unit sales rose 84 percent to 8,641, the company said Wednesday.
Vroom was able to capitalize on higher inventory levels in an environment of high demand but tight overall vehicle supplies.
The company highlighted its ability to buy vehicles from customers in the quarter. CEO Paul Hennessy told investors and analysts in a conference call that over the past three quarters the company has increased acquired inventory from customers — as a percentage of sales — from 31 percent in the third quarter of 2020 to 41 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020 and now 54 percent in the latest period.
“Supply will continue to be a focus and area of investment for Vroom, particularly given the uncertainty over the duration of the current supply and pricing market,” Hennessy said.
The company had more than 11,000 vehicles for sale at the end of the first quarter, with 35 percent of those available for immediate sale, CFO Dave Jones said.
The company continues to increase reconditioning capacity, adding five third-party reconditioning facilities in the first quarter, bringing its total to 24 such sites.
“Our hybrid, asset-light approach to reconditioning continues to provide us with capacity, and agility,” Hennessy said. “We believe that we are well-positioned to not only handle our projected 2021 volumes, but are also scaling our capacity to handle sales growth and volumes in advance of needing it for 2022.”
Company revenue surged 57 percent to $591.1 million in the first quarter. Gross profit nearly doubled to $36.2 million. Vroom’s net loss in the quarter jumped 88 percent to $77.2 million.
Shares in Vroom gained 11 percent to $39.40 in after-hours trading late Wednesday.