What happened
Shares of the co-working company WeWork (WE) traded nearly 7.5% up in the final hour of trading today for no obvious reason, although real estate stocks in general are performing well today as investors seem to be taking a more favorable view of the macro environment.
So what
WeWork last week reported earnings results for the second quarter of the year, generating a net loss of $635 million on revenue of $815 million. The loss, however, includes roughly $391 million of noncash expenses. Both numbers missed analyst estimates for the quarter.
"From our core dedicated space offerings, to our access products and newly launched software solution, WeWork Workplace, our second quarter results demonstrate how the versatility of our offerings provide companies of all sizes with the ultimate adaptability," CEO Sandeep Mathrani said in a statement.
He added, "As we head into the second half of the year, we remain confident in our proven ability to execute against our goals of growing revenue, increasing occupancy and continuing to drive toward profitability."
The company reaffirmed its full-year guidance of $3.4 billion to $3.5 billion of revenue, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of negative $400 million to negative $475 million.
Now what
WeWork seems to be rebounding today with other heavily beaten-down real estate stocks on the belief that inflation may have peaked and that the Fed may soon start to slow the pace of interest rate hikes, or that rates could potentially decline in 2023.
While this could be true, it's tough making a bet on the movement of interest rates. WeWork is still losing a lot of money and needs to continue to improve its business fundamentals before I would take a look.
