A typo in Lyft’s earnings release sends stock soaring – briefly
(CNN) — A typo in Lyft’s fourth-quarter earnings report caused the rideshare company’s stock to surge and then dramatically reverse course on Tuesday.
Posted — UpdatedIn an earnings statement released after the bell, Lyft estimated its gross margin would expand by 500 basis points, or 5 percentage points. That sent the company’s stock shooting higher.
However, Lyft appeared to include an errant zero in its numbers: The company’s actual estimate is much lower, at 50 basis points or a half a percentage point.
On Lyft’s earnings call, held shortly after the release, the company’s chief financial officer, Erin Brewer, provided the correct estimate.
“This is actually a correction for the press release,” Brewer said.
Lyft’s stock surged to $19.70 at its post-earnings release high, after trading around $12 per share during the day, representing a gain of 62% from its close.
However, the stock dramatically reversed course after Brewer’s correction, trading around $14.13, for a gain of around 18% from the day’s close.
Overall, Lyft reported a 17% year-over-year increase in gross bookings for the quarter and revenue of $1.2 billion, a 4% year-over-year increase.
“We’ve entered 2024 with a lot of momentum and a clear focus on operational excellence, which positions the company to drive meaningful margin expansion and our first full-year of positive free cash flow,” Brewer said in a statement.
However, the rideshare company continues to burn through cash. On Tuesday, Lyft reported a net loss of $340.3 million for the full-year 2023 – a significant reduction in its full-year 2022 loss of $1.6 billion.
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