Ride-hailing company Uber’s shares took a dive on Wednesday after the company issued weaker guidance for the June quarter and posted a surprise loss in the first quarter of this year.
The company’s net loss in the three months to the end of March widened to $654 million from $157 million in the prior-year period. Uber said its net loss includes a $721 million net headwind from unrealised losses related to the reassessment of its equity investments.
Analysts were expecting a net profit of more than $500 million in the last quarter.
Uber’s stock dropped 9.09 per cent to trade at $64.03 a share at 8.10pm UAE time (12.10pm New York time), giving the company a market value of $133.45 billion. However, the stock has surged almost 10 per cent since the start of the year.
“We were already expecting a deceleration in average spending in several markets due to slower-than-expected economic activity in the US in the first quarter and persistent consumer pressures. However, this is way above the base case,” Thomas Monteiro, senior analyst at Investing.com, told The National.
“This casts significant doubt over the company's ongoing turnaround towards a leaner, more focused operation, forcing [Uber’s chief executive] Dara Khosrowshahi to rethink strategies from top to bottom, particularly as we expect a tougher H2 in several markets.”
The company posted a revenue of more than $10.13 billion in the January-March period, nearly 15 per cent up on an annual basis, exceeding analysts’ expectation of $10.11 billion.
Uber predicted its second quarter’s gross bookings, or the total dollar value earned from its services, to hover in the range of $38.75 billion to $40.25 billion. Its mid-point is below the analysts’ estimates of $40.04 billion.
The company expects its adjusted income to range between $1.45 billion and $1.53 billion.
Mr Khosrowshahi told CNBC the company’s loss had “nothing to do with the operating business”.
“We did have to mark down those equity stakes that resulted in a loss … we don’t expect that to keep happening going forward.”
The company’s last quarter operating income stood at $172 million, up from a loss of $262 million in the same period last year.
The company’s gross bookings surged 20 per cent year on year to more than $37.6 billion in the first quarter.
Delivery gross bookings increased 18 per cent to $17.6 billion and mobility bookings surged 25 per cent to $18.6 billion.
Freight unit bookings – which include transport, logistics, supply chain and storage solutions – dropped 8 per cent yearly to almost $1.3 billion.
“More than 7 million people now choose to earn flexibly on Uber every month, with driver earnings of $16.6 billion continuing to grow faster than our top-line,” Mr Khosrowshahi said.
The company also crossed 2.6 billion trips in the last quarter – an average of nearly 1.16 million trips per hour, or almost 28 million trips per day, with the company defining trips as the number of completed consumer mobility rides and delivery orders in a given period.
The monthly active platform consumers reached 149 million in the previous quarter. It grew 15 per cent year-on-year, driven by continued improvement in consumer activity for both mobility and delivery offerings, Uber said.
Uber’s chief financial officer Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah said the company’s multi-year growth framework is on track, with audience up 15 per cent and frequency up 6 per cent in the first quarter.
"As we still expect financial conditions to improve, this may very well open the door for competitors currently positioned on a better part of the growth curve," Mr Montiero said.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
'Joker'
Directed by: Todd Phillips
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix
Rating: Five out of five stars
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Where can I submit a sample?
Volunteers can now submit DNA samples at a number of centres across Abu Dhabi. The programme is open to all ages.
Collection centres in Abu Dhabi include:
- Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC)
- Biogenix Labs in Masdar City
- Al Towayya in Al Ain
- NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City
- Bareen International Hospital
- NMC Specialty Hospital, Al Ain
- NMC Royal Medical Centre - Abu Dhabi
- NMC Royal Women’s Hospital.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Ajax v Juventus, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match on BeIN Sports
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League quarter-final second leg:
Juventus 1 Ajax 2
Ajax advance 3-2 on aggregate
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
More on Quran memorisation:
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Getting there
The flights
Flydubai operates up to seven flights a week to Helsinki. Return fares to Helsinki from Dubai start from Dh1,545 in Economy and Dh7,560 in Business Class.
The stay
Golden Crown Igloos in Levi offer stays from Dh1,215 per person per night for a superior igloo; www.leviniglut.net
Panorama Hotel in Levi is conveniently located at the top of Levi fell, a short walk from the gondola. Stays start from Dh292 per night based on two people sharing; www. golevi.fi/en/accommodation/hotel-levi-panorama
Arctic Treehouse Hotel in Rovaniemi offers stays from Dh1,379 per night based on two people sharing; www.arctictreehousehotel.com
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group B
Barcelona v Tottenham Hotspur, midnight
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
The biog
Title: General Practitioner with a speciality in cardiology
Previous jobs: Worked in well-known hospitals Jaslok and Breach Candy in Mumbai, India
Education: Medical degree from the Government Medical College in Nagpur
How it all began: opened his first clinic in Ajman in 1993
Family: a 90-year-old mother, wife and two daughters
Remembers a time when medicines from India were purchased per kilo
The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 630bhp
Torque: 900Nm
Price: Dh810,000
Company%20profile
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