ATLANTA and IRVINE, Calif. -

Given the demand they’re fetching and the resulting short supply, perhaps it’s no surprise that the auction value of sports cars increased more than any other segment in April, according to Kelley Blue Book.

Between March 27 and April 24, the KBB Auction Value of model-year 2012 to 2014 sports cars jumped 2.6 percent, the company said in its latest Blue Book Market Report. The next highest increase was for the full-size SUV/crossover segment, where prices went up 1.9 percent.

“It is typical to see the sports car segment gain momentum prior to summer months, as consumers have more options to choose from due to warmer weather,” KBB’s report indicated.

The company mentioned the BMW Z4, Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, Dodge Challenger, Scion FR-S and Mazda Miata as some of the popular cars in this segment.

And according to the most recent scarcity report from KBB’s Cox Automotive sister company Autotrader,  the majority of scarce late-model and certified pre-owned vehicles in March were sporty cars, both at the national level and in specific metro markets. The scarcity report, which is provided to Auto Remarketing each month, ranks CPO and late-model non-CPO used vehicles that are in high demand but short supply.

“Spring has arrived, and car buyers’ desires have turned to sporty cars,” Autotrader senior analyst Michelle Krebs said in the report.

Going back to KBB’s auction value rankings for April, the minivan/van segment came in at No. 3 (up 1.5 percent), while full-size cars and midsize cars were next, each up 1.4 percent.

At the opposite end of the pricing spectrum, electric vehicles (again, model-year 2012 through 2014) had the greatest dip for the four-week period. Their KBB Auction Values fell 8.5 percent. Next on the list were high-end luxury cars (down 1.6 percent), hybrid/alternative-energy cars (down 1.3 percent), luxury cars (down 1.1 percent) and sporty compact cars (down 1.0 percent). 

“The electric vehicle segment was the worst-performing segment in April, down 8.5 percent, or $1,300, due primarily to the Nissan LEAF and Mitsubishi i-MiEV, while the hybrid segment was down only 1.3 percent, or $187 dollars,” KBB analyst Sean Foyil said in the report. “Low fuel prices as well as increasing lease returns have been the largest contributing factors in pushing values for the Nissan LEAF lower.” 

For more analysis, see Auto Remarketing's recent story on the EV and the hybrid/alternative-fuel car market, which includes insight from Edmunds.com, NADA Used Car Guide, ALG and Black Book. 

In a similar but separate analysis, Tom Webb — chief economist for Manheim, another Cox Automotive company — gave some additional perspective to the upswing in midsize cars he observed in April, while also touching on a few other top-performing segments.

“In what was likely a temporary turnaround, midsize cars had an uptick in pricing in April. They remain, however, one of the weaker segments over the past year,” Webb said. “Pickups, vans, and large SUVs continued to be the significant outperformers.”

Overall, the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index dipped 0.6 percent to 124.2 in April, its third straight month of decline, as wholesale prices dipped 0.2 percent on a mix-, mileage- and seasonally adjusted basis (but increased modestly prior to the seasonal adjustment).

But take that decrease with a grain of salt, Webb says.

“Although April represented the third consecutive monthly decline in the Manheim Index, it would be incorrect to say that wholesale pricing is weak. In fact, it is fairer to say that used-vehicle values are elevated and have remained in a relatively narrow range for more than four years,” Webb said.

“Higher new-vehicle transaction prices and disciplined marketing have clearly played a role in supporting used-vehicle residual values,” he continued. “And, although wholesale supplies are beginning to grow quite nicely, the aggregate numbers are not yet outside of historic norms.”

Staff Writer Sarah Rubenoff contributed to this report.