(Sharecast News) - Food delivery giant Just Eat revealed on Wednesday that it had turned EBITDA positive in the second half of the year amid an increased focus on profitability during the period.
Just Eat said it has swung from an underlying loss of €134.0m in the first six months of 2022 to underlying earnings of €150.0m in the second half, driven by improved revenues per order. Full-year gross transaction values were stable at €28.2bn.
The London-listed group stated that three out of its four operating segments returned to sequential order growth from August 2022 onwards. However, this reversal was "less pronounced" in Southern Europe and Australia/New Zealand due to the inverse seasonality in the Southern Hemisphere. Order declines in North America decelerated in Q4.
Looking forward, Just Eat said it will maintain focus on profitability and expects to deliver positive adjusted underlying earnings of approximately €225.0m in 2023 - including additional investments in food and non-food adjacencies and wage costs inflation, and also takes into account an "uncertain" macroeconomic environment.
"Growth in 2023 is expected to be skewed towards the end of the year, given the lower absolute order level of H2 2022 versus H1 2022. The long-term objectives for Just Eat Takeaway.com remain unchanged," said Just Eat.
As of 0850 GMT, Just Eat shares had surged 11.81% to 2,380.50p.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com