shares extended gains for the on Friday, rising nearly 5 per cent after the company reported strong quarterly earnings and improved profitability across segments.
The stock traded at ₹1,968.60 on the at 11.14 am after hitting an intraday high of ₹2,012.20 against the previous close of ₹1,921.80.
The rally comes after the company reported a 64 per cent y-o-y rise in standalone net profit for the quarter ended March 2026 at ₹35.17 crore, compared with ₹21.44 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.
For FY26, profit after tax increased to ₹115.46 crore from ₹74.45 crore in the previous financial year, supported by operational efficiencies and improved margins.
Global brokerage Citi maintained its buy rating on the stock, though it cut the target price to ₹2,520 from ₹3,150. The brokerage said the OLX business missed expectations, but product cadence remains promising despite rising concerns around artificial intelligence-led disruption.
Citi noted that the automotive market continues to witness sustained growth acceleration following GST tax cuts and said CarTrade’s reported user traffic in the March quarter had not yet shown visible impact from AI-driven shifts in user behaviour. It also highlighted that product and monetisation initiatives in the used vehicle segment, which is relatively less exposed to AI disruption, remain promising.
Meanwhile, Kotak Securities maintained its sell recommendation on the stock while raising the target price to ₹1,860 from ₹1,800. The brokerage said CarTrade delivered strong profitability across segments, although standalone and OLX businesses saw slight moderation in growth.
Kotak added that EBITDA margin improvement across segments was driven by operating leverage, while future growth would depend on better monetisation of the core business and the OLX platform. The brokerage said it would await a better entry point given current valuations.