PAG vs KMX vs LAD Stock Comparison

Penske Automotive, Carmax and Lithia Motors Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
KMX Carmax Inc
$53.91 -5.7% 1M +19.6% 1Y
Market cap
$7.64B
P/E
26.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$27.63B
Div. yield
–
Auto Dealerships Consumer Discretionary
2 wins
LAD Lithia Motors Inc
$290.64 -8.1% 1M -9.7% 1Y
Market cap
$6.46B
P/E
9.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$38.21B
Div. yield
–
Auto Dealerships Consumer Discretionary
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Penske Automotive leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Penske Automotive 7, Lithia Motors 2, Carmax 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionPAGKMXLADLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $13.93B $7.64B $6.46B PAG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 15.4x 26.1x 9.1x LAD
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 17.0x 17.6x 8.5x LAD
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +0.6% +4.8% +1.6% KMX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.8% 1.1% — PAG
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 8.4% 1.1% — PAG
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 3.6x 20.4x — PAG
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.03% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +27.8% +19.6% -9.7% PAG
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +14.9%/yr -16.9%/yr -1.8%/yr PAG
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 27.6% 54.7% 41.3% PAG
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 38/100 48/100 36/100 KMX

Percentile Scorecard

PAGKMXLAD

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisPAGKMXLAD
Valuation 46 #57 of 104 70 #32 of 104 63 #39 of 104
Growth 16 #83 of 99 40 #60 of 99 39 #61 of 99
Profitability 50 #50 of 98 35 #64 of 98 30 #69 of 98
Financial Health 24 #85 of 112 21 #89 of 112 29 #80 of 112
Shareholder Returns 56 #32 of 72 73 #20 of 72 17 #60 of 72
Overall 38 48 36
  • PAG ranked among 115 companies in Retail
  • KMX ranked among 115 companies in Retail
  • LAD ranked among 115 companies in Retail

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodPAGKMXLADSPY
1 month +1.3%-5.7%-8.1% -0.2%
3 months -3.4%-8.4%-18.9% +3.9%
6 months +31.3%+39.5%+4.8% +8.2%
Year to date +34.0%+39.5%-12.5% +12.9%
1 year +27.8%+19.6%-9.7% +12.3%
3 years +46.6%-10.9%+22.7% +87.4%
3 years, per year +13.6%-3.8%+7.0% +23.3%
5 years +100.5%-60.4%-8.5% +67.9%
5 years, per year +14.9%-16.9%-1.8% +10.9%
10 years +389.9%+6.6%+240.2% +261.1%
10 years, per year +17.2%+0.6%+13.0% +13.7%

Risk

MeasurePAGKMXLADSPY
Volatility, 1Y 27.6%54.7%41.3% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 22.5%65.0%39.9% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.561.240.53 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.010.36-0.23 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -25.3%-80.1%-47.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -5.2%-16.1%-32.0% -1.2%
52-week high $223.90$64.22$427.48 $779.14
52-week low $140.60$30.88$243.00 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultiplePAGKMXLAD
P/E now vs peer median 15.4xmedian 16.7x 26.2xmedian 16.7x 9.1xmedian 16.7x
P/S now vs peer median 0.4xmedian 0.5x 0.3xmedian 0.5x 0.2xmedian 0.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 13.4xmedian 9.0x 30.4xmedian 9.0x —median 9.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 23.9xmedian 16.5x 6.7xmedian 16.5x -12.6xmedian 16.5x
P/B now vs peer median 2.4xmedian 1.7x 1.2xmedian 1.7x 1.0xmedian 1.7x
PEG now vs peer median -1.76median 0.72 -2.53median 0.72 —median 0.72

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsPAGKMXLAD
Revenue $32.20B $27.63B $38.21B
Gross profit $5.20B $2.85B $5.79B
Operating income $1.24B $392.76M $1.55B
Net income $908.10M $292.45M $794.40M
Free cash flow $581.90M $1.15B –
EPS (diluted) $13.78 $2.05 –
Cash & equivalents $69.50M $170.53M $374.00M
Total debt $5.20B $15.71B –
Shares (diluted) 65.73M 142.45M 22.50M
Enterprise value $13.63B $7.01B $6.46B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricPAGKMXLAD
P/E 15.4x 26.2x 9.1x
P/FCF 23.9x 6.7x -12.6x
P/Operating cash flow 15.6x 4.8x -78.7x
P/S 0.4x 0.3x 0.2x
P/B 2.4x 1.2x 1.0x
P/Tangible book 3.1x 1.2x 1.0x
EV/EBITDA 13.4x 30.4x –
EV/EBIT 15.3x 59.1x –
EV/Revenue 0.6x 0.8x 0.2x
EV/FCF 32.8x 20.2x –
EV/Operating cash flow 21.3x 14.5x -78.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -1.76 -2.53 –

Growth

14 metrics
MetricPAGKMXLAD
Revenue growth (1Y) 0.6% 4.8% 1.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 3.9% 0.8% 8.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -1.5% -3.6% 0.9%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 2.0% 1.8% 3.8%
Operating income growth (1Y) -11.1% -23.0% -7.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -5.0% 0.1% -3.5%
Net income growth (1Y) -10.5% -43.9% -11.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -9.9% -13.6% -8.7%
EPS growth (1Y) -9.9% -41.0% –
EPS CAGR (3Y) -8.8% -10.3% –
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -14.0% 32.4% -127.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -8.9% 29.1% 33.0%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -17.8% 67.3% –
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -12.0% 53.9% –

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricPAGKMXLAD
Gross margin 16.1% 10.3% –
EBITDA margin 4.4% 2.8% –
Operating margin 3.9% 1.4% –
Pretax margin 3.9% 1.6% –
Net margin 2.8% 1.1% –
FCF margin 1.8% 4.1% –
Operating cash flow margin 2.8% 5.8% -0.2%
Return on equity 15.8% 4.7% 12.2%
Return on assets 4.9% 1.1% 3.0%
Return on invested capital 8.4% 1.1% –
Return on capital employed 10.6% 1.6% –
Asset turnover 1.7x 1.0x 1.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.0x 5.5x -0.1x
Stock comp / revenue 0.1% 0.4% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricPAGKMXLAD
Debt / assets 28.1% 60.3% –
Debt / equity 0.9x 2.5x –
Net debt / EBITDA 3.6x 20.4x –
Debt / FCF 8.9x 13.7x –
Liabilities / assets 68.4% 75.8% 75.3%
Equity / assets 31.6% 24.2% 24.7%
Interest coverage – 3.3x –
Current ratio 1.0x 2.3x 1.0x
Quick ratio 0.2x 0.2x –
Cash ratio 0.0x 0.1x –
Altman Z-score 3.07 1.71 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricPAGKMXLAD
Dividend yield 2.7% – 0.8%
Net buyback yield 0.5% 3.4% –
Shareholder yield 3.2% 3.4% 0.8%
Payout ratio (earnings) 40.1% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 62.7% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) 15.1% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 29.8% – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusPAGKMXLAD
Forward P/E 17.0xFY2026 17.6xFY2026 8.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $12.45FY2026 $3.06FY2026 $34.04FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -6.6%FY2026 +5.2%FY2026 +1.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +18.0% +21.2% +15.7%
Revenue, next fiscal year $34.43BFY2026 $29.97BFY2026 $37.52BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +8.2%FY2026 +15.8%FY2026 -0.3%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -9.1% +0.4% +8.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersPAGKMXLAD
Held by institutions 27.8% 100.0% 100.0%
Institutions holding 393 557 445
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.0% -2.9% +0.2%
Institutions buying 209 232 223
Institutions selling 105 251 160
Buyers to sellers 1.99 0.92 1.39

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

PAGKMXLAD
PAG 1.00 0.37 0.56
KMX 0.37 1.00 0.42
LAD 0.56 0.42 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, PAG, KMX and LAD?

Penske Automotive (PAG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Penske Automotive (PAG) $13.93B, Carmax (KMX) $7.64B, Lithia Motors (LAD) $6.46B.

Which stock is cheaper, PAG, KMX and LAD?

Lithia Motors (LAD) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Penske Automotive (PAG) 15.4x, Carmax (KMX) 26.1x, Lithia Motors (LAD) 9.1x). On next year's consensus earnings, Lithia Motors (LAD) is cheapest (Penske Automotive (PAG) 17.0x, Carmax (KMX) 17.6x, Lithia Motors (LAD) 8.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Carmax (KMX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Penske Automotive (PAG) +0.6%, Carmax (KMX) +4.8%, Lithia Motors (LAD) +1.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

Penske Automotive (PAG) has the highest net margin (Penske Automotive (PAG) 2.8%, Carmax (KMX) 1.1%). On return on invested capital, Penske Automotive (PAG) leads (Penske Automotive (PAG) 8.4%, Carmax (KMX) 1.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Penske Automotive (PAG) returned the most: Penske Automotive (PAG) +27.8%, Carmax (KMX) +19.6%, Lithia Motors (LAD) -9.7%. Over five years, Penske Automotive (PAG) compounded fastest (Penske Automotive (PAG) +14.9%/yr, Carmax (KMX) -16.9%/yr, Lithia Motors (LAD) -1.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Penske Automotive (PAG) 0.03%, Carmax (KMX) 0.00%, Lithia Motors (LAD) 0.00%. Carmax (KMX) and Lithia Motors (LAD) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Penske Automotive (PAG) has been the steadiest (Penske Automotive (PAG) 27.6%, Carmax (KMX) 54.7%, Lithia Motors (LAD) 41.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, PAG, KMX and LAD?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Penske Automotive (PAG) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.