Activist investor Starboard Value, led by Jeff Smith, cut its position in used-car retailer CarMax by 48.3% during the second quarter of 2026. The firm sold approximately 2.99 million shares, reducing its holding to 3.21 million shares valued at about $169.6 million as of June 30. This large trade follows Starboard's disclosure of a major stake in March 2026, at which time it nominated two directors to the company's board and pushed for strategic changes.
This sale was disclosed in a quarterly 13F filing on August 14, 2026, which reveals positions held at the end of the prior quarter. The move reduced Starboard's portfolio weight in KMX from 5.64% to 3.75%. The significant reduction in shares comes just a few months after Starboard initiated its activist campaign, expressing confidence that CarMax's business was "fairly easy to fix" and had a significant opportunity for a turnaround.