Shares of Lyft (LYFT -1.95%) were moving higher today after the nation's No. 2 ridesharing company delivered solid first-quarter results, bouncing back from the pandemic and showing that recent cost-cutting efforts were paying off. As of 12:18 p.m. ET, the stock was up 5.5% on the news.
Lyft is gaining steam
The ride-hailing specialist said gross bookings in the quarter were up 21% to $3.7 billion, driving revenue up 28% to $1.28 billion, which easily beat analyst expectations at $1.16 billion. Key metrics were solid across the board as active riders rose 12% to 21.9 million and total rides increased 23% to 188 million. Demand for early morning, commute, and weekend evening trips was particularly strong.
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The company touted strong adoption for its women+ connect program, which allows women drivers and riders to preference matches with other women. It continues to expand in Canada.
On the bottom line, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) jumped from $22.7 million to $59.4 million. However, the company remains unprofitable on the bottom line on a generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) basis. Its per-share loss narrowed from $0.50 to $0.08, though analysts had expected a $0.03 per-share profit.
CFO Erin Brewer said, "We continue to see demand for our platform increase and our Q1 results reflect this. We delivered strong top-line growth and had our second consecutive quarter of positive free cash flow."
What's next for Lyft
Lyft's gains today also came as rival Uber posted disappointing results in its own first-quarter earnings report, drawing an important contrast.
In its guidance, Lyft forecast $4 billion-$4.1 billion in gross bookings in the second quarter and adjusted EBITDA of $95 million-$100 million, up from $41 million in the year-ago quarter. The company also said it expected to be free-cash-flow positive for the year, a key milestone for the company and one reason for the stock's gains today.
Lyft has its first investor day conference scheduled for June 6. Investors should expect to hear more about its long-term plans and financial expectations.
