12:42 pm, October 27, 2022
Cazoo has reported record revenues for the third quarter against the backdrop of a significant loss last year.
The online used car dealer today (Oct 27) said the three months ended September 30, 2022 had returned revenues of £347m.
That figure was up by 103 per cent compared to the same quarter the year before, and was driven ‘by very strong UK retail sales growth’.
The result has led to Cazoo being bullish about its position in the UK used car market, saying the performance gives it ‘great confidence’ in becoming ‘the largest and most profitable used car retailer in the UK over time’.
The third quarter profit of £347m followed profits for the two previous quarters of £304m and £278m respectively.
The results were published just over week after the company revealed its 2021 full-year accounts, which showed losses came to £329m last year.
The 2021 performance also showed losses had more than trebled compared to the year before.
For the third quarter, meanwhile, Cazoo sold 23,775 vehicles – up 82 per cent on the same period last year – which consisted of nearly 19,000 retail and just under 5,000 wholesale units.
Gross profit per unit (GPU) came to £488 – up on the £309 and £124 recorded for Q2 and Q1 2022 respectively – which was down by £313 on Q3 2021. Then Cazoo was making £801 per vehicle it was selling
Gross profit for the period came to £10m – £1m less and 3.7 percentage points down on Q3 2021.
Looking ahead to the fourth quarter, Cazoo said it expects to increase retail unit sales growth, GPU and market share towards its target of five per cent of the UK used car market.
It also added that it expects ‘to reach cash flow breakeven without the need for additional external funding’.
The third quarter trading update also said Cazoo’s chief financial officer, Paul Woolf, and chief operating officer Paul Whitehead will join its board.
Meanwhile, board directors Lord Rothermere and Stephen Morana will step down on October 27, 2022 and October 31, 2022, respectively.
Cazoo founder and CEO, Alex Chesterman (pictured), said: ‘This very strong performance shows that consumers continue to embrace our proposition and the shift to online car buying continues to accelerate.
‘In less than three years since launch, we have already become one of the largest used car retailers in the UK, having now sold almost 100,000 vehicles entirely online, and remain incredibly excited about our ability to capture a five per cent or greater share of the £100bn UK used car market.’
He added: ‘Our strong growth and momentum in Q3 and our continued focus on cash preservation gives us great confidence in our ability to become the largest and most profitable used car retailer in the UK over time.’
