By Yasin Ebrahim
Investing.com - Shares of Lyft surged in after-hours trading on Tuesday after upgrading its outlook on performance, citing a return to stronger rideshare demand sooner than expected.
LYFT (NASDAQ:LYFT) was up more than 2% on the news.
The adjusted EBITDA loss in the first quarter of 2021 was expected to be $135 million, an improvement from the prior outlook of between $145 million and $150 million. The company attributed the improvement in its outlook for reduced operating expenses and to the contribution of margin, which is expected to be at the top end of the previously provided range.
In February, average daily rideshare rides increased 4.0% month-over-month relative to the average daily rideshare ride volume in January 2021. Rideshare ride volume during the week ending February 28th reached a new record level for 2021 and was the company’s best week since March 2020.
Looking ahead, the company expects rideshare ride volume beginning the week ending March 21, 2021, to show positive year-on-year growth. "This growth trend is expected to continue through the duration of 2021 barring a significant worsening of COVID-19 conditions," it added.