Oct 29 (Reuters) - Used car retailer Carvana CVNA.O reported higher third-quarter profit and revenue on Wednesday, aided by strong demand for preowned vehicles.

Demand for used vehicles has remained strong as consumers flock to older cars to avoid hefty price tags on new ones caused by tariffs.

"We believe tariffs have actually led us to a stronger used-vehicle market," Cox Automotive Chief Economist Jonathan Smoke said in a report.

Carvana's shares nearly quadrupled in 2024 after its quarterly profits improved over the years aided by cost-saving measures, including slowing down on car purchases and pausing some hiring, as it navigated a bumpy used-vehicle market.

The stock is up about 78% so far this year.

Its overall revenue in the third quarter rose 54.5% to $5.65 billion from a year ago. Analysts, on average, expected the company to report a quarterly revenue of about $5.08 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Net income in the quarter ended September 30 rose to $263 million from $148 million a year earlier.

(Reporting by Nathan Gomes in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)

((Nathan.Gomes@thomsonreuters.com))