E-commerce retailer Wayfair reported fourth-quarter results early Thursday that missed widely on earnings as revenue also fell short. Wayfair climbed.
The company reported an adjusted loss of 92 cents a share on revenue of $3.25 billion. Analysts expected Wayfair to report a loss of 69 cents on revenue of $3.25 billion. Revenue fell 11.4% from the year-ago period. It showed earnings of $1.24 in the year-ago period.
Wayfair said it shipped 12.1 million orders in the fourth quarter, down 27% from the year-ago period. The company said product demand has waned since the pandemic has eased. During intense periods of the pandemic, consumers who were flush with stimulus cash savings and looking to revamp their homes flocked to Wayfair. In addition, supply chain difficulties persisted.
Wayfair stock climbed 4.7% to close at 127.07 on the stock market today.
Wayfair Stock Hit By Consumer Buying Shifts
"While consumer behavior has changed repeatedly throughout the pandemic, the primary elements for success in our category have not," Chief Executive Niraj Shah said in written remarks with the Wayfair earnings release. "The home remains top of mind and secular trends favor a long and durable shift to e-commerce. Wayfair has only just begun to scratch the surface of this vast opportunity."
Boston-based Wayfair runs a variety of websites, offering more than 18 million items. The sites offer home furnishings, appliances and decor across a number of styles and price points. In addition to Wayfair.com, the company also runs Birch Lane, Joss & Main and Perigold.
Active customers in the quarter fell 12.5% to 27.3 million.
"Over the last two years, we've grown our top line by more than 50% without increasing our head count, which demonstrates the scalability and attractive structural economics of our business," Shah said. "Today, we are continuing our high return on investment across all dimensions to set ourselves up for continued strong growth."
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