Lyft stock is getting punished, down more than 35% after weak guidance
Lyft's CFO pointed to "seasonality and lower prices" to explain the guidance.
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The Lyft logo is shown on the screen at the Nasdaq offices in Times Square on March 29, 2019 in New York.
Don Emmert | AFP | Getty Images
Shares of Lyft fell more than 35% when markets opened on Friday, a day after the company reported guidance for its first quarter of 2023 that fell short of analyst expectations.
The company expects to make about $975 million in revenue in Q1, while analysts had been anticipating $1.09 billion, according to StreetAccount.
Lyft's CFO pointed to "seasonality and lower prices" to explain the guidance.
Lyft posted a revenue beat of $1.18 billion for the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to the $1.16 billion analysts were expecting, according to Refinitiv. It also reported an adjusted loss per share of 74 cents.
Wall Street noticed the contrast between Lyft's report and Uber's earnings.
"Our positive thesis on Lyft had been based on post-pandemic recovery combined with an accelerated shift to profit through cost rationalization. However, rideshare is now approaching full recovery in the US, but Lyft is not," JPMorgan's Doug Anmuth said. It was hit with several downgrades from JPMorgan, KeyBanc, Loop Capital, Truist,
Rival Uber, by contrast, posted its strongest quarter ever in its earnings report earlier in the week, sending its stock up.
