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Side-by-side financial comparison of CATO CORP (CATO) and CarMax (KMX). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
CarMax is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($5.8B vs $155.4M, roughly 37.3× CATO CORP). CarMax runs the higher net margin — 1.1% vs -3.3%, a 4.4% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, CATO CORP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (6.3% vs -6.9%). CarMax produced more free cash flow last quarter ($1.1B vs $-12.9M). Over the past eight quarters, CarMax's revenue compounded faster (1.5% CAGR vs -5.7%).
The Cato Corporation is an American retailer of women's fashions and accessories. The company is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. As of January 2016, the company operated 1,372 stores under the names Cato, Cato Plus, It's Fashion, It's Fashion Metro and Versona.
CarMax, Inc. is a used vehicle retailer based in the United States. It operates two business segments: CarMax Sales Operations and CarMax Auto Finance. The company began as a side business of Circuit City Corporation, Inc., opening its first location in September 1993 in Richmond, Virginia. As of January 2025, CarMax operates 253 locations.
CATO vs KMX — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 2026 vs Q3 2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $155.4M | $5.8B |
| Net Profit | $-5.2M | $62.2M |
| Gross Margin | 32.7% | 10.2% |
| Operating Margin | -5.3% | — |
| Net Margin | -3.3% | 1.1% |
| Revenue YoY | 6.3% | -6.9% |
| Net Profit YoY | 65.6% | -50.4% |
| EPS (diluted) | $-0.28 | $0.43 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $155.4M | $5.8B | ||
| Q3 25 | $176.5M | $6.6B | ||
| Q2 25 | $170.2M | $7.5B | ||
| Q1 25 | $157.9M | $6.0B | ||
| Q4 24 | $146.2M | $6.2B | ||
| Q3 24 | $168.6M | $7.0B | ||
| Q2 24 | $177.1M | $7.1B | ||
| Q1 24 | $174.9M | $5.6B |
| Q4 25 | $-5.2M | $62.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $6.8M | $95.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.3M | $210.4M | ||
| Q1 25 | $-14.1M | $89.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-15.1M | $125.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $95.0K | $132.8M | ||
| Q2 24 | $11.0M | $152.4M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $50.3M |
| Q4 25 | 32.7% | 10.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 36.8% | 10.9% | ||
| Q2 25 | 35.8% | 11.8% | ||
| Q1 25 | 29.2% | 11.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | 29.6% | 10.9% | ||
| Q3 24 | 35.3% | 10.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | 36.5% | 11.1% | ||
| Q1 24 | 32.1% | 10.4% |
| Q4 25 | -5.3% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.1% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.0% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | -15.2% | 2.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | -11.6% | 2.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | -0.4% | 2.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | 3.5% | 2.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | -9.5% | 1.2% |
| Q4 25 | -3.3% | 1.1% | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.9% | 1.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.9% | 2.8% | ||
| Q1 25 | -8.9% | 1.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | -10.3% | 2.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.1% | 1.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 6.2% | 2.1% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 0.9% |
| Q4 25 | $-0.28 | $0.43 | ||
| Q3 25 | $0.35 | $0.64 | ||
| Q2 25 | $0.17 | $1.38 | ||
| Q1 25 | $-0.73 | $0.58 | ||
| Q4 24 | $-0.79 | $0.81 | ||
| Q3 24 | $0.01 | $0.85 | ||
| Q2 24 | $0.54 | $0.97 | ||
| Q1 24 | $-1.15 | $0.31 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $79.0M | $204.9M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | — | $16.6B |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $167.6M | $6.1B |
| Total Assets | $450.2M | $25.6B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | — | 2.74× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $79.0M | $204.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $90.8M | $540.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $80.0M | $262.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $77.7M | $247.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $86.2M | $271.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $104.7M | $524.7M | ||
| Q2 24 | $105.4M | $218.9M | ||
| Q1 24 | $103.0M | $574.1M |
| Q4 25 | — | $16.6B | ||
| Q3 25 | — | $17.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $18.0B | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $18.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $18.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | — | $18.1B | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $18.2B | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $18.0B |
| Q4 25 | $167.6M | $6.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | $172.2M | $6.2B | ||
| Q2 25 | $164.9M | $6.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $162.3M | $6.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $177.1M | $6.2B | ||
| Q3 24 | $195.1M | $6.2B | ||
| Q2 24 | $196.9M | $6.2B | ||
| Q1 24 | $192.3M | $6.1B |
| Q4 25 | $450.2M | $25.6B | ||
| Q3 25 | $436.9M | $27.1B | ||
| Q2 25 | $440.8M | $27.4B | ||
| Q1 25 | $452.4M | $27.4B | ||
| Q4 24 | $424.4M | $27.3B | ||
| Q3 24 | $455.6M | $27.3B | ||
| Q2 24 | $477.1M | $27.2B | ||
| Q1 24 | $486.8M | $27.2B |
| Q4 25 | — | 2.74× | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 2.87× | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 2.86× | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 2.91× | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 2.92× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 2.93× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 2.95× | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 2.96× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $-12.4M | $1.3B |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $-12.9M | $1.1B |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | -8.3% | 19.2% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 0.3% | 2.4% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | — | 20.14× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $-7.5M | $1.9B |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $-12.4M | $1.3B | ||
| Q3 25 | $11.8M | $785.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.9M | $299.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $-6.5M | $146.4M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-22.1M | $-23.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $3.1M | $619.1M | ||
| Q2 24 | $5.7M | $-117.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-11.2M | $309.6M |
| Q4 25 | $-12.9M | $1.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | $10.4M | $654.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.8M | $162.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $-7.8M | $18.8M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-23.8M | $-150.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.6M | $509.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.4M | $-221.6M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-13.5M | $199.8M |
| Q4 25 | -8.3% | 19.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 5.9% | 9.9% | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.7% | 2.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | -5.0% | 0.3% | ||
| Q4 24 | -16.3% | -2.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.9% | 7.3% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.4% | -3.1% | ||
| Q1 24 | -7.7% | 3.6% |
| Q4 25 | 0.3% | 2.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.8% | 2.0% | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.6% | 1.8% | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.9% | 2.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.2% | 2.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.9% | 1.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.8% | 1.5% | ||
| Q1 24 | 1.3% | 2.0% |
| Q4 25 | — | 20.14× | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.72× | 8.24× | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.17× | 1.42× | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 1.63× | ||
| Q4 24 | — | -0.19× | ||
| Q3 24 | 32.95× | 4.66× | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.52× | -0.77× | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 6.16× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
CATO
| Retail Segment | $154.7M | 100% |
| Credit Card | $5.3M | 3% |
KMX
| Used Vehicles | $4.5B | 78% |
| Wholesale Vehicles | $1.1B | 19% |
| Other | $150.6M | 3% |
| Extendedprotectionplan Domain | $96.6M | 2% |
| Advertising Subscription Revenues Domain | $35.1M | 1% |
| Service Domain | $18.5M | 0% |
| Thirdpartyfinancefees Domain | $3.0M | 0% |
