NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Shares of TrueCar (TRUE) - Get Report were gaining 29.7% to $7.95 on Friday after the online car buying service provider reported a smaller than expected loss for the third quarter after the market closed on Thursday.

TrueCar reported a loss of 3 cents a share for the third quarter, beating analysts' estimates of a loss of 5 cents a share for the quarter. Revenue grew 27.6% year over year to $72.4 million for the third quarter, above analysts' estimates of $66.21 million for the quarter.

Car sales grew 21% year over year to 208,304 in the third quarter, TrueCar said the average transaction revenue per unit grew to $324 from $303 in the year-ago quarter.

"I am particularly excited with the performance of our affinity partner channels this past quarter, where we had healthy growth rates across all of our key metrics," CFO and Interim COO Mike Guthrie said in a statement. "In particular, we are working better than ever with our partners at USAA and are pleased that more USAA members than ever are having great car buying experiences at TrueCar Certified Dealers."

Looking to the fourth quarter, TrueCar said it expects earnings of $64 million to $65.5 million, compared to analysts' estimates of $64.2 million for the quarter.

TheStreet Ratings team rates TRUECAR INC as a Sell with a ratings score of D-. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

We rate TRUECAR INC (TRUE) a SELL. This is driven by a few notable weaknesses, which we believe should have a greater impact than any strengths, and could make it more difficult for investors to achieve positive results compared to most of the stocks we cover. The area that we feel has been the company's primary weakness has been its deteriorating net income.

You can view the full analysis from the report here: TRUE

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