Uber, in a statement released to the press today, announced that it is withdrawing its 2020 guidance for Gross Bookings, Adjusted Net Revenue, and Adjusted EBITDA, which were provided on February 6, 2020. This comes as the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lock downs have severely impact not just Uber’s but every other business in general.
“Given the evolving nature of COVID-19 and the uncertainty it has caused for every industry in every part of the world, it is impossible to predict with precision the pandemic’s cumulative impact on our future financial results.”, said Uber in its press statement.
Along with the announcement, Uber also gave out dates for its quarterly earnings call for Q1 2020 results. The earnings call would happen on May 7th, 2020.
Uber also said that it is expecting losses to widen significantly due to the global lockdowns in place and the company’s inability to operate in such lockdowns. Uber is expecting to record an impairment charge against the carrying value of some of our minority equity investments. The company believe these investments will be reduced by an estimated range of $1.9 to $2.2 billion during the three months ended March 31, 2020, due to the impact of the pandemic on the estimated value of these entities.
These reductions in “Investments” on our Balance Sheet are expected to increase Q1 GAAP net loss by $1.9 to $2.2 billion, but are not expected to impact Q1 Adjusted Net Revenue, Adjusted EBITDA, cash and cash equivalents, or short-term investments.
However, all is not bad for Uber. The company is expecting fast recover in the post-COVID 19 era. Uber is a mobility platform and considering that people’s movements will initiate at a faster pace post lockdown, the company is expecting some recovery to happen soon. Additionally, US President Donald Trump just recently announced a three-phase re-opening of the American economy, which will further help businesses.
“As one of the world’s largest platforms for work, we continue to believe that we will play an important role in the economic recovery of cities around the globe.”, Uber added.
