Lyft Loses Money Again But Eyes Profits In About 2 Years

Despite higher average prices, Lyft’s number of active riders grew 28% to surpass 22 million. The money-losing company has struggled to demonstrate a path to profitability, just like its larger rival Uber.

Lyft is still losing staggering sums of money as it barrels ahead with impressive revenue growth, but its executives said they believe the company will turn a corner and reach profitability in about two years.

The ride-hailing heavyweight brought in $955.6 million in revenue in the third quarter, up 63% from the same time last year, the company said Wednesday. That beat expectations of analysts polled by FactSet.

But San Francisco company lost $463.5 million in the quarter compared with a $249.2 million loss a year ago. More than half of the loss came from stock-based compensation and payroll tax expenses related to its initial public offering. On the bright side, Lyft’s executives emphasized they believe the company will turn a profit in the fourth quarter of 2021, a year earlier than they had previously projected.

One reason for optimism: Lyft is providing far fewer discounted rides than it did a year ago, according to Brian Roberts, the company’s chief financial officer.

“More people are paying full price for rides,” Roberts said in an interview with The Associated Press. Lyft is also focusing on more profitable rides, such as airport or business trips, he said.

“We are very focused on profitable growth, not growth at all costs,” Roberts said.