As the Q1 earnings season wraps, let’s dig into this quarter’s best and worst performers in the online marketplace industry, including Shutterstock (NYSE: SSTK) and its peers.

Marketplaces have existed for centuries. Where once it was a main street in a small town or a mall in the suburbs, sellers benefitted from proximity to one another because they could draw customers by offering convenience and selection. Today, a myriad of online marketplaces fulfill that same role, aggregating large customer bases, which attracts commission-paying sellers, generating flywheel scale effects that feed back into further customer acquisition.

The 13 online marketplace stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q1. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.2% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 3.2% on average since the latest earnings results.

Shutterstock (NYSE: SSTK)

Originally featuring a library that included many of founder Jon Oringer’s photos, Shutterstock (NYSE: SSTK) is now a digital platform where customers can license and use hundreds of millions of pieces of content.

Shutterstock reported revenues of $242.6 million, up 13.2% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 4.1%. Overall, it was a mixed quarter for the company with an impressive beat of analysts’ number of paid downloads estimates but a miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Shutterstock delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates of the whole group. The company reported 120.9 million service requests, up 245% year on year. Interestingly, the stock is up 10.9% since reporting and currently trades at $18.26.

Read our full report on Shutterstock here, it’s free.

Best Q1: eHealth (NASDAQ: EHTH)

Aiming to address a high-stakes and often confusing decision, eHealth (NASDAQ: EHTH) guides consumers through health insurance enrollment and related topics.

eHealth reported revenues of $113.1 million, up 21.7% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 13.4%. The business had an exceptional quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

eHealth pulled off the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. On a dimmer note, the company reported 1.16 million users, down 1.8% year on year. Although it had a fine quarter compared its peers, the market seems unhappy with the results as the stock is down 7% since reporting. It currently trades at $4.35.

Is now the time to buy eHealth? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q1: The RealReal (NASDAQ: REAL)

Founded by consignment store aficionado Julie Wainwright, The RealReal (NASDAQ: REAL) is an online marketplace for buying and selling secondhand luxury goods.

The RealReal reported revenues of $160 million, up 11.3% year on year, in line with analysts’ expectations. It was a slower quarter as it posted full-year EBITDA guidance missing analysts’ expectations.

The RealReal delivered the weakest full-year guidance update in the group. The company reported 985,000 users, up 157% year on year. As expected, the stock is down 24.8% since the results and currently trades at $5.49.

Read our full analysis of The RealReal’s results here.

EverQuote (NASDAQ: EVER)

Aiming to simplify a once complicated process, EverQuote (NASDAQ: EVER) is an online insurance marketplace where consumers can compare and purchase various types of insurance from different providers

EverQuote reported revenues of $166.6 million, up 83% year on year. This result surpassed analysts’ expectations by 5.2%. It was an exceptional quarter as it also recorded EBITDA guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations.

EverQuote pulled off the fastest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is down 7.9% since reporting and currently trades at $24.27.

Read our full, actionable report on EverQuote here, it’s free.

ACV Auctions (NYSE: ACVA)

Founded in 2014, ACV Auctions (NASDAQ: ACVA) is an online auction marketplace for car dealers and wholesalers to buy and sell used cars.

ACV Auctions reported revenues of $182.7 million, up 25.4% year on year. This print met analysts’ expectations. Taking a step back, it was a mixed quarter as it also recorded an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

ACV Auctions achieved the highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The company reported 208,025 units sold, up 19.1% year on year. The stock is up 4% since reporting and currently trades at $16.29.

Read our full, actionable report on ACV Auctions here, it’s free.

Market Update

Thanks to the Fed’s series of rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has cooled significantly from its post-pandemic highs, drawing closer to the 2% goal. This disinflation has occurred without severely impacting economic growth, suggesting the success of a soft landing. The stock market thrived in 2024, spurred by recent rate cuts (0.5% in September and 0.25% in November), and a notable surge followed Donald Trump’s presidential election win in November, propelling indices to historic highs. Nonetheless, the outlook for 2025 remains clouded by potential trade policy changes and corporate tax discussions, which could impact business confidence and growth. The path forward holds both optimism and caution as new policies take shape.

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