Maplebear (NASDAQ:CART) Cut to Hold at Needham & Company LLC

Maplebear (NASDAQ:CART) was downgraded by analysts at Needham & Company LLC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on the company. Argus increased their price target on Maplebear from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Wedbush assumed coverage on Maplebear in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $59.00 price objective for the company. Benchmark raised their target price on Maplebear from $55.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Maplebear from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Maplebear from $69.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $58.65.

Maplebear Stock Performance

Shares of CART stock opened at $57.11 on Friday. Maplebear has a 52-week low of $32.73 and a 52-week high of $62.00. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.23. The company has a market capitalization of $13.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.21, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.87.

Maplebear (NASDAQ:CART) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.63 by ($0.03). Maplebear had a return on equity of 20.19% and a net margin of 11.97%. The firm had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.42 EPS. Maplebear’s quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Maplebear will post 2.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Maplebear news, CFO Emily Reuter sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total value of $2,750,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 599,337 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,963,535. This trade represents a 7.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Ravi Gupta sold 150,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.61, for a total value of $7,591,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 591,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,936,979.03. This represents a 20.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 309,928 shares of company stock worth $16,121,073 in the last three months. Insiders own 24.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Maplebear

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Maplebear in the third quarter worth $601,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Maplebear during the 3rd quarter valued at $87,000. Vise Technologies Inc. purchased a new stake in Maplebear during the 3rd quarter worth about $716,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al lifted its holdings in Maplebear by 16.9% during the 3rd quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 97,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,206,000 after purchasing an additional 14,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Motley Fool Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Maplebear by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 8,750 shares of the company’s stock worth $377,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.09% of the company’s stock.

Key Maplebear News

Here are the key news stories impacting Maplebear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: DoorDash agreed to acquire Maplebear in a transaction combining a major restaurant-delivery platform with the leading U.S. grocery-delivery service. The deal could create operating efficiencies, broaden customer reach, and strengthen DoorDash’s position against Amazon and Walmart. The official announcement describes approximately $17 billion in equity value, while some reports refer to the deal as $16 billion. DoorDash to acquire Instacart for $17B
• Positive Sentiment: Instacart’s third-quarter operating results showed continued momentum ahead of the acquisition: gross transaction volume increased 15% year over year, revenue rose 17%, adjusted EBITDA climbed 23% to $342 million, and GAAP net income reached $147 million. Instacart Announces Third Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: The transaction is not expected to close until late 2027 or the first half of 2028. Consequently, CART may trade below the $65 consideration value as investors weigh regulatory, shareholder-approval, financing, and closing risks.
• Neutral Sentiment: Maplebear reported third-quarter EPS of $0.60, below the roughly $0.63–$0.64 consensus estimate, but revenue of about $1.09 billion exceeded expectations near $1.07 billion. EPS improved from $0.42 a year earlier, tempering the earnings miss. Maplebear Q3 Earnings Miss Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Several law firms are investigating whether Maplebear’s board obtained a fair price and properly handled potential conflicts or competing offers. Separately, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani criticized the merger over possible higher consumer prices and worse worker conditions, highlighting potential antitrust and regulatory scrutiny.

About Maplebear

Maplebear Inc, doing business as Instacart, operates a technology-enabled grocery marketplace that connects consumers with retailers and personal shoppers. Through its website and mobile applications, customers can order groceries and other household products for delivery or pickup from participating supermarkets, specialty food stores, convenience retailers and other merchants.

The company also provides retailers with e-commerce, fulfillment and advertising solutions. Its platform supports online storefronts, order management, delivery logistics, customer engagement and data-driven marketing, allowing retail partners to offer digital shopping services and reach consumers through Instacart’s marketplace.

Founded in 2012, Maplebear serves customers across the United States and Canada.