What happened
Shares of Lyft (LYFT 2.78%) jumped on Wednesday after the ridesharing company delivered solid third-quarter results.
As of 3:45 p.m. EDT, Lyft's stock price was up more than 8%.
So what
Lyft's revenue soared 73% year over year to $864.4 million, as more drivers returned to work. "Driver supply materially improved in Q3, up nearly 45% versus last year, reflecting strong new driver trends," CEO Logan Green said in a press release.
Moreover, demand for rides is recovering as vaccinations increase and COVID-19 case counts moderate. Lyft's active riders surged 51.4% to 18.9 million.
Better still, people are calling for rides more often. Lyft's revenue per active rider increased 14.2% to a record $45.63 in the quarter.
Image source: Getty images.
These revenue gains combined with cost cuts helped Lyft narrow its losses to $71.5 million, compared to a net loss of $459.5 million in the year-ago quarter. The ride-hailing service also generated positive adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of $67.3 million, signifying notable progress toward management's goal of achieving full-year adjusted EBITDA profitability in 2021.
Now what
Lyft expects to produce revenue of $930 million to $940 million in the fourth quarter, representing year-over-year growth of 63% to 65%. Management also guided for adjusted EBITDA of $70 million to $75 million.
During a conference call with analysts, chief financial officer Brian Roberts said that Lyft will emerge from the pandemic a stronger and more profitable company with enviable long-term growth prospects. "We plan on building a significantly larger business as we attack the massive market opportunity ahead of us," Roberts said.
