DoorDash’s Q3 earnings show an increased appetite for delivery, despite inflation

 

By Jessica Bursztynsky

On Thursday, DoorDash reported larger-than-expected revenue growth for its third quarter, showing consumer spending in the segment has held strong despite pressure from inflation and continued pandemic recovery.

 
 
 

The delivery platform posted revenue of $1.7 billion, which is up 33% from the same quarter a year ago. Within the same time period, DoorDash said the number of total orders grew 27% to 439 million. Marketplace gross order value (or the total value of its app orders and subscription fees) also jumped 30% to $13.5 billion. 

Shares jumped more than 13% in after-hours trading on the report.

Companies in the gig space have been under pressure from investors amid fears that consumers are cutting back on nonessential services. But reports this quarter have broadly indicated that people still are spending their cash on on-demand rides and food delivery. Even so, continued macroeconomic pressure and regulatory concerns have led many of the gig companies to see a sharp decrease in share price. 

 
DoorDash’s Q3 earnings show an increased appetite for delivery, despite inflation

DoorDash shares have dropped more than 67% year-to-date. Uber’s stock price has shed more than 34% so far, and Instacart, DoorDash’s competitor for delivering groceries and other goods, pulled its plans to go public. 

“Our services now drive more volume to more merchants in more geographies than at any point in our history and, by most metrics, we now have a business that is larger and more durable than at any point in our history,” CEO Tony Xu and CFO Prabir Adarkar wrote in a joint letter to investors. “Our stock price, unfortunately, has not been one of those metrics,”

In the third quarter, the company posted a wider-than-expected net loss of $296 million, which it says is partly attributable to stock-based compensation and a hiring increase. 

 

The company also anticipates continued growth for the end of the year. DoorDash is predicting its fourth quarter gross order value will be between $13.9 billion to $14.2 billion. “Our Q4 outlook anticipates a consumer-spending environment that is consistent with recent months,” the company said. 

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