The transport service provider Uber opened the books for inspection on Thursday evening after the US exchange closed.
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The travel agent Uber has gone deep into the red due to the Corona crisis. In the first quarter, the loss increased by 190 percent year-on-year to $ 2.9 billion, as the taxi competitor announced on Thursday after the US market closed. “Our service business was hit hard by the pandemic,” said Uber boss Dara Khosrowshahi.
Nevertheless, the company managed to increase revenue 14 percent to $ 3.5 billion. This was mainly due to the strong growth of the food delivery service Uber Eats, which enjoyed great popularity during the lockdown. However, the spread of the virus only really became noticeable at the end of the quarter; in the current quarter, Uber has to cope with significantly greater strains.
Khosrowshahi also commented on the current quarter in a conference call after presenting the balance sheet. The bus service business dropped 80 percent in April, but has recovered steadily in the past three weeks, said the Uber boss. “We assume that the low point in the USA is behind us”. Recently there has been relatively strong growth again, said Khosrowshahi.
It was already clear that the Corona crisis would tear a huge hole in the balance sheet – Uber had already announced depreciation of up to $ 2.2 billion in mid-April. However, these large value adjustments were due to minority interests that Uber holds in other companies – such as the travel agent, Didi Chuxing in China and Grab in Singapore.
Uber is struggling against the drastic slump in business. Around 3,700 full-time jobs are to be cut. This would affect about 14 percent of the 26,900 employees. CEO Khosrowshahi wants to forego his basic salary by the end of the year. The company expects the layoffs to initially result in approximately $ 20 million in termination and severance payments. Further burdens would still be examined.
This is how the Uber share reacts
Even though the loss plummeted year-on-year in the first quarter, the shares continued their previous day’s rally according to the figures.
At the closing bell on the NYSE, the stock rose 5.69 percent to $ 32.69.
At $ 33.30, they have now reached their highest level since early March.
A positive steep draft from the competitor Lyft had caused the Uber papers to skyrocket by 11 percent the previous day. In the first quarter, Lyft’s results exceeded last expectations. The Lyft papers had skyrocketed by 22 percent on Thursday, and now they are advancing by 3.6 percent with Uber.
The revenue development at Uber in the first quarter was identified as an important course driver on the market. According to retailers, it shows that the group manages to continue growing through its diversified positioning, even if the virus crisis paralyzes people’s mobility worldwide. The 14 percent increase in revenue was primarily due to the strong growth of the food delivery service Uber Eats, which enjoyed great popularity during the lockdown.
Goldman Sachs analyst Heath Terry continues to believe after the first quarter that the mobility group’s opportunity and risk balance is favorable in a mature sector environment. He particularly emphasized Uber’s ability to overcome this crisis and the expected recession – and in a stronger position compared to competitors whose platforms are less differentiated and who are less well positioned on the balance sheet.
Uber stocks were still close to the level of the IPO in May 2019 at prices above $ 40 before the virus crisis hit them particularly hard in the meantime. In mid-March, they hit a record low of less than $ 14, but since then they have recovered rapidly with a price that has more than doubled.
/ hbr / DP / zb
SAN FRANCISCO (dpa-AFX)
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