Uber reports loss of $1 billion in the first quarter post IPO
Despite 20 percent growth from the same quarter last year, Uber reported a loss of 1 billion during the first quarter earnings call this year.
San Francisco-based ride hailing company Uber reported high-growth, but it was one it could not handle!
On Friday, the company announced its financial results for the first quarter and reported a loss of $1 billion on a $ 3.1billion revenue during its earnings call held in San Francisco.
At the company's earnings call, Nelson Chai, Chief Financial Officer of Uber, said,
“Our Q1 2019 results were at or near the high-end of the ranges we shared last month in our IPO prospectus.”
Compared to the same quarter last year, Uber reported a 20 percent growth. Uber Eats, the company’s food delivery platform grew by 89 percent in revenue, contributing most to the overall growth of this quarter. In transport, the company claimed an average of 17 million daily trips.
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Uber also spoke about its acquisition of Careem, a ridesharing, meal delivery, and payments company and its Middle East rival. The deal, worth $3.1 billion, is expected to close in January 2020. At present, Careem operates in the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan.
During the earnings call, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi addressed the company’s IPO saying,
“Earlier this month we took the important step of becoming a public company, and we are now focussed on executing our strategy to become a one-stop shop for local transportation and commerce.”
The company announced other developments for the quarter. Uber Rewards, its loyalty programme, was expanded throughout the US in March, where consumers can earn points by sending on its core platform and later receive benefits like flexible cancellation.
Similarly, Uber Pro is a driver rewards programme, which was launched in 10 cities of the US in March, will now be expanded nationwide. Through this, Uber drivers can get benefits like gas and car maintenance discounts, and access to a tuition-free college education at the Arizona State University Online.
Nelson Chai added that the company’s investment will focus on global platform expansion, long-term product and technology differentiation but at the same time, it will not hesitate to divert the investments towards defending Uber’s market position globally.
