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ROGERS, Ark. – September 10, 2026 – America's Car-Mart, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRMT) today disclosed first-quarter results for fiscal 2027, revealing a severe contraction driven by ongoing capital limitations. Retail units sold plummeted 81.9% to 2,450, while total revenue fell 57.3% to $145.8 million compared to the same period last year. The company, which operates a chain of used-car dealerships targeting subprime buyers, also confirmed that its special committee, alongside advisors and management, continues to evaluate a range of financing and strategic alternatives, including third-party discussions.
President and CEO Doug Campbell attributed the dire figures squarely to capital constraints, not demand weakness. “This is a capital structure story, not a demand story,” he said in the earnings release. “Application volume was limited by the vehicles we had available to sell.” Inventory ended the quarter at just $35.2 million, down from $112.5 million a year earlier and from $54.1 million at the end of April 2026. The company’s limited capacity to purchase vehicles forced it to run down stock throughout the quarter, further compressing sales volume. The consolidation of 60 dealership locations during fiscal 2026—reducing the count from 154 to 94—also weighed on results.
Credit performance deteriorated as well. Net charge-offs reached 9.5% of average finance receivables, up from 6.6% a year ago, while accounts over 30 days past due edged higher to 4.6% from 4.1%. Campbell pointed to three drivers: the portfolio’s contraction, continued fuel and cost-of-living pressures on customers, and the transition of a small portion of the book to centralized collections—a process completed last quarter alongside the dealership consolidations. “The transition work is now behind us,” he added.
The company’s inventory strategy also shifted. With limited capital to fund new originations, Car-Mart began wholesaling nearly all repossessed vehicles in late May to accelerate cash conversion, rather than retaining some for retail sale as it historically did. This drove third-party wholesale revenue up to $21.0 million from $10.8 million year-over-year, but it did not offset the core retail decline. Average retail sales price, excluding ancillary products, increased 7.0% to $18
