Lyft Accelerates Ridership Revenue Despite Large 1st-Quarter Net Loss

Company reports earnings for the first time since March IPO

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May 07, 2019
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Lyft Inc. (LYFT, Financial) said on Tuesday that even though the company reported a large net loss, revenue for the quarter ending March 31 was $776 million, up from revenue of $397.2 million in the prior-year quarter.

The San Francisco-based company reported a net loss of $1.13 billion, reflecting $894 million in stock-based compensation and related payroll taxes related to the company’s initial public offering in March.

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Company boosts active ridership growth on key initiatives and partnerships

Lyft CEO Logan Green said during the earnings call that revenues increased on strong growth in active users, driven by key initiatives like product innovation, market growth and focused execution. Green highlighted the company’s “Shared Saver” initiative: If two customers are two blocks away from one another and are going to the same destination, the feature allows them to share a ride and save money. Even though Lyft’s services represent a small amount of total vehicle miles driven, Green saw increased market growth across various partnerships, including corporate, health care, airlines and universities.

Lyft’s management also highlighted key partnerships, including Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL, Financial)(GOOG, Financial) subsidiary Waymo. According to management, the self-driving technology development company expects to begin using the Lyft platform during the second quarter and increase to approximately 10 vehicles.

Stock still lags IPO price

Shares of Lyft closed at $59.34, down 2.03% from Monday’s close of $60.57 and 17.58% from the IPO price of $72.

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GuruFocus ranks Lyft’s financial strength 8 out of 10, primarily due to no long-term debt. Despite this, the company's profitability ranks 2 out of 10 as operating margins and returns on equity are less than -45% and -26%.

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David Carlson (Trades, Portfolio) established a 21,300-share position in Lyft during the quarter.

Disclosure: No positions.

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