CART News Report — 2026-02-14

Overview

Sources Breakdown

Key Themes Today

1. Strong Q4 2025 Performance and Growth Acceleration

• Instacart (Maplebear) reported Q4 CY2025 revenue of $992 million, marking a 12.3% year-on-year increase and exceeding Wall Street’s expectations (Yahoo 10).
• The company achieved its strongest quarterly volume performance in three years, with Gross Transaction Value (GTV) rising 14% in Q4 (Yahoo 9, 21).
• Non-GAAP profit reached $0.97 per share, surpassing analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.8% (Yahoo 10).
• This robust performance led to Instacart shares jumping over 13.2% in the morning session, with some reports indicating a surge of more than 14% (Yahoo 8, 9).

2. Positive Analyst Revisions and Price Target Increases

• Needham raised its price target on Instacart to $55 from $50, maintaining a Buy rating, citing the company's continued execution against competition fears (Yahoo 1, Benzinga 18).
• Benchmark also maintained a Buy rating on Maplebear and increased its price target from $53 to $55 (Benzinga 15).
• SeekingAlpha upgraded its rating on Instacart, suggesting that GTV acceleration makes the stock a "dip worth buying" (SeekingAlpha 3).
• Conversely, Wells Fargo analyst Ken Gawrelski lowered their price target from $47 to $43 while maintaining an Equal-Weight rating (Benzinga 13).

3. Strategic Partnerships and International Expansion

• Instacart plans to launch a joint pilot with Toast (NYSE:TOST) in early 2026, focusing on digital ordering, inventory visibility, and just-in-time procurement for restaurants and retailers, with a broader rollout expected later in 2026 (Yahoo 6).
• Costco Wholesale (NasdaqGS:COST) is expanding its same-day grocery delivery services to Europe through its partnership with Instacart, launching dedicated delivery websites in France and Spain (Yahoo 11).
• The company highlighted momentum across its Marketplace, enterprise technology platform, and advertising business as key drivers for future growth (Yahoo 21).

4. Enhanced Consumer Value Proposition

• Instacart's wide selection, fast delivery options, and improved affordability are resonating positively with consumers, contributing to the stock's recent jump (Yahoo 5).
• The company's execution provides positive data points that help alleviate concerns about competition (Yahoo 1).

Top Articles by Impact

Bullish

1. Instacart price target raised to $55 from $50 at Needham (Yahoo)
   • This article highlights a significant analyst upgrade and price target increase, signaling strong confidence in Instacart's future performance.
2. Why Instacart (CART) Stock Is Up Today (Yahoo)
   • This explains the substantial 13.2% stock jump, attributing it to strong Q4 revenue beat and a robust forecast, providing a clear reason for market optimism.
3. Instacart shares surge after strong Q4 volume (Yahoo)
   • Details the >14% share surge driven by the strongest quarterly volume performance in three years and a 14% rise in GTV, underscoring fundamental business strength.
4. Toast Instacart Pilot May Reshape Workflows And Valuation Story (Yahoo)
   • This article reveals a new strategic pilot program with Toast, indicating Instacart's expansion into new B2B and restaurant technology verticals, potentially broadening its market and revenue streams.
5. Costco Tests European E Commerce Delivery While Shares Trade At Premium (Yahoo)
   • Highlights Instacart's role in Costco's first e-commerce grocery delivery expansion into Europe, demonstrating international growth and strengthening of a key retail partnership.

Bearish

1. Wells Fargo Maintains Equal-Weight on Maplebear, Lowers Price Target to $43 (Benzinga)
   • This is the only explicit bearish analyst action, where Wells Fargo lowered its price target, indicating a more cautious outlook compared to other firms.

Risk Factors

• Profit margins came under pressure during the fourth quarter, despite strong volume growth (Yahoo 9).
• The company reported declining net income (Yahoo 19).
• Instacart continues to face competitive pressures in the market (Yahoo 19).
• While overshadowed by strong revenue, the company did miss on earnings per share (Yahoo 8).

Cross-Source Consensus Signals

STRONG SIGNAL: Strong Q4 2025 Earnings and GTV Growth. Multiple sources (Yahoo 4, 8, 9, 10, 16, 19, 21, SeekingAlpha 3) consistently highlight Instacart's better-than-expected Q4 sales, accelerating order growth, and record GTV growth as key drivers for its recent stock performance. MODERATE SIGNAL: Analyst Price Target Increases. Needham (Yahoo 1, Benzinga 18) and Benchmark (Benzinga 15) both raised their price targets to $55, indicating a positive consensus among several analysts. WEAK SIGNAL: Strategic Partnerships and International Expansion. The new pilot with Toast (Yahoo 6) and the Costco Europe expansion (Yahoo 11) are significant developments but are mentioned in fewer distinct articles compared to earnings.

=== OVERALL SENTIMENT === BULLISH

=== ONE-LINE SUMMARY === Instacart shares surged today following a strong Q4 2025 earnings beat, record GTV growth, and positive analyst price target increases, further bolstered by new strategic partnerships with Toast and international expansion with Costco.