Shares of Lyft plunge 30% after the company issues weak guidance

After releasing disappointing forecasts in its Thursday earnings release, Lyft shares dropped more than 30% in after-hours trade.

Here are the major metrics for Lyft's fourth fiscal quarter of 2022:

Adjusted per-share loss: 74 cents

According to Trade Algo, revenue was $1.18 billion against $1.16 billion.

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Here are the major numbers Lyft reported for its fourth fiscal quarter of 2022:

• Adjusted loss per share: 74 cents
• Revenue: $1.18 billion against $1.16 billion, according to analysts surveyed by Refinitiv

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According to Trade Algo, Lyft plans to earn around $975 million in sales during the first quarter of the fiscal year 2023, which is less than the $1.09 billion experts predicted. Lyft also anticipates a first-quarter adjusted EBITDA between $5 million and $15 million.

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"Our Q1 projection is the result of seasonality and lower prices, including less Prime Time," CFO Elaine Paul stated in the earnings release, referring to the period when there is more passenger demand than driver supply and the firm can earn more money.

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Additionally, the variable timing of our insurance renewals exerts pressure on our P&L at different times. We will not wait for the situation to stabilize before achieving competitive service levels. We are committed to increasing growth and profitability."

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The rideshare company recorded 20,3 million active riders during the third quarter, which was virtually unchanged from the previous quarter but up 8.7% year-over-year. Likewise, this number remains below pre-pandemic levels. For example, in the fourth quarter of 2019, Lyft had 22.9 million active riders.

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The current quarter's revenue of $1.18 billion is a 21% increase compared to the prior year's revenue of $969.9 million.

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Lyft stated that, in accordance with SEC advice released in December to all publicly traded businesses, it is adjusting how it calculates non-GAAP financial metrics to reflect insurance reserve adjustments for earlier quarters, which will have an impact on its adjusted EBITDA. In its supplemental earnings report, the company gave restatements for these outcomes.

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"According to our modified non-GAAP calculation, Adjusted EBITDA was $248.3 million negative, compared to negative $47.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2021 and negative $26.7 million in the third quarter of 2022," Lyft stated.

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The firm recorded a net loss of $588.1 million, or $1.61 per share, for the quarter, which is more than double the loss it had for the same quarter in the prior year. It allocated $201.3 million to stock-based compensation and associated payroll tax obligations.

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As it continues to confront macroeconomic problems, Lyft launched its reorganization in November in an effort to minimize operating expenditures. However, Lyft stated that the restructuring expenditures do not represent the performance of its current operations.

Uber, in contrast,

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Wednesday's profits surpassed analyst projections. Uber's revenue grew by 49% year-over-year during its greatest quarter ever. According to the report, the number of active drivers on the road reached an all-time high and topped 2 billion trips in a single quarter for the first time ever.