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Will Coronavirus-Led Rides Weakness Mar Lyft (LYFT) Q3 Earnings?

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Lyft Inc (LYFT - Free Report) is scheduled to report third-quarter 2020 results on Nov 10, after market close.

The company has an impressive earnings history, having outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the preceding four quarters, the average beat being 39.7%. Let’s see whether the company is able to retain its beat streak in the impending quarterly results.

Factors to Note

With people mostly confined to their homes amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Lyft’s ride volumes continue to be significantly weak. In September, the company revealed that rides were down 53.6% year over year in the first two months of the third quarter. This weakness is expected to get reflected in Active Riders (riders who take at least one ride during a quarter on Lyft’s multimodal platform through its app) and Revenue per Active Rider. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Active Riders in the third quarter indicates a decline of 30.3% from the year-ago reported figure. The same for total revenues in the third quarter suggests a 47.5% drop from third-quarter 2019’s reported number.

However, ride volumes have improved on a month-on-month basis in the third quarter, owing to which Lyft estimates adjusted EBITDA loss for the third quarter to be below $265 million. Additionally, cost-cutting measures are anticipated to have supported the company’s bottom line in the third quarter.

Lyft, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

Lyft, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

Lyft, Inc. price-eps-surprise | Lyft, Inc. Quote

Earnings Whispers

The proven Zacks model does not conclusively predict a beat for Lyft this earnings season. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of beating estimates. However, that is not the case here. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Earnings ESP: Lyft has an Earnings ESP of 0.00% as both the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate are pegged at a loss of 89 cents.
 
Zacks Rank: Lyft carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

Highlights of Q2 Earnings

In the last-reported quarter, Lyft incurred a loss of 86 cents per share, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $1.58. Total revenues of $339.3 million also beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $328 million. However, the top line declined approximately 61% year over year due to a fall in Active Riders and Revenue per Active Rider.

Stocks to Consider

Investors interested in the broader Computer and Technology sector may consider Advanced Energy Industries Inc (AEIS - Free Report) , Alteryx Inc and TMobile US Inc (TMUS - Free Report) as these stocks possess the right combination of elements to beat on earnings this reporting cycle.

Advanced Energy Industries has an Earnings ESP of +1.03% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Alteryx has an Earnings ESP of +3.09% and a Zacks Rank #3.

TMobile has an Earnings ESP of +25.00% and a Zacks Rank of 3.

Each of the companies mentioned above will release third-quarter 2020 results on Nov 5.

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