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DoorDash shares rise as delivery company boosts outlook, investors shrug off driver shortage

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Sign reading We Deliver With Doordash, referencing the Doordash food delivery service, San Ramon, California, September 12, 2020.
Smith Collection/Gado | Archive Photos | Getty Images

DoorDash on Thursday reported a wider-than-expected quarterly loss, blaming a short-term shortage of delivery drivers as consumer demand outstripped its forecast.

But the company raised its forecast, cheering up investors. The stock rose more than 6% in extended trading.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:

  • Loss per share: 34 cents vs. 26 cents expected
  • Revenue: $1.08 billion vs. $993.3 million expected

DoorDash lost 34 cents per share, a wider loss than the 26 cents per share expected by analysts surveyed by Refinitiv. Delivery drivers were in short supply, dragging margins down further, but the issue was resolved by the end of the quarter, it said.

“Stronger-than-expected consumer demand, along with extreme weather events and the impact of stimulus checks, resulted in a meaningful undersupply of Dashers in the latter part of Q1,” company executives wrote in a letter to investors.

Net sales rose 198% to $1.08 billion, topping expectations of $993.3 million. Total orders reached 329 million during the quarter.

The company raised its 2021 forecast for gross order value to $35 billion to $38 billion, up from a prior range of $30 billion to $33 billion. DoorDash also widened its forecast range for adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to between $0 to $300 million. Its prior range was $0 to $200 million.