What happened
Shares of connected-TV platform company Roku (ROKU -0.32%) soared on Wednesday after the company filed an unscheduled report. The report included increased financial guidance for the upcoming third quarter of 2023. And it also included some new measures to reduce expenses and boost profitability.
Initially, the market seemed to really like this update as Roku stock traded as much as 15% higher early in the session. But as of 10:40 a.m. ET, the stock was still up 7%.
So what
Roku's Q3 expectations are now substantially higher than they were back in July. In the second quarter, management guided for Q3 revenue of $815 million. Now it expects revenue of $835 million to $875 million, which would represent strong 10% to 15% year-over-year growth.
Roku also expects smaller losses for adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA). It guided for an adjusted EBITDA loss of $50 million but now it thinks its loss will only be $20 million to $40 million.
Higher growth and lower losses combined to excite the market today.
Now what
There are asterisks on this news from Roku. First, the company is laying off roughly 10% of its workers, which will carry one-time severance expenses. And it's expecting impairment charges because it's consolidating office space. Finally, it's also cutting back on streaming video content, which also has a one-time cost.
Adding it all up, Roku is looking at up to $330 million in one-time expenses related to today's news. Its Q3 adjusted EBITDA guidance excludes these charges. Therefore, investors will need to adjust their expectations regarding the timing of Roku's improved unadjusted profitability. It may not tangibly show up this year.
