What happened
Shares of Uber Technologies (UBER 1.90%) were pulling back today after the transportation company's first-ever quarterly operating profit was overshadowed by concerns about slowing growth.
As a result, the stock was down 5.2% as of 12:18 p.m. ET.
So what
The ride-hailing and food delivery specialist easily beat estimates in its second-quarter report as gross bookings rose 16% to $33.6 billion and revenue was up 14% to $9.23 billion, or 17% on a constant-currency basis, which missed estimates at $9.3 billion.
Both mobility and delivery performed well as mobility gross bookings rose 25% to $16.7 billion and delivery gross bookings were up 12% to $15.6 billion.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) also jumped as Uber's profitability continues to improve, rising 152% to $916 million, and free cash flow tripled to $1.14 billion.
On a generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) basis, the company reported an operating profit of $326 million, up from an operating loss of $713 million. It also benefited from gains in investments and reported GAAP earnings per share of $0.18, which was better than the consensus of a $0.01 loss per share.
CFO Nelson Chai said: "The unique power of the Uber platform and the team's relentless focus on profitable growth was on full display in Q2, with record profitability and over $1 billion of quarterly free cash flow. I'm incredibly proud of the progress we've made, and Uber is well positioned to drive tremendous value for shareholders in the coming years."
NYSE: UBER
Key Data Points
Now what
For the third quarter, Uber guided to gross bookings of $34 billion to $35 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $975 million to $1.025 billion. The gross bookings guidance represented an 18.5% increase from the year-ago quarter, but just 3% on a sequential basis, which seemed to lead to doubts about its growth potential.
The stock may have also sold off as it's already made considerable gains this year, roughly doubling coming into today's report. Investors seem to think the improved performance is sufficiently reflected in the stock price now.
If Uber's revenue growth is going to remain in the teens, the company will have to deliver increased profitability.
