5. LYFT Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT)
Market Capitalization as of September 11: $4.55 billion
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 53
LYFT Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT) is an American company offering mobility as a service through ride-hailing, vehicles for hire, motorized scooters, a bicycle-sharing system, rental cars, and food delivery across the US and select cities in Canada. It provides a platform that connects passengers with drivers, allowing users to request rides through a mobile app.
Earlier this year, the company launched a program to ensure that drivers earn at least 70% of their fare. Driver and rider engagement hit a record high in Q2 2024, with 23.7 million quarterly active riders, up over 10% year-on-year, including 34% more women and nonbinary drivers year-over-year, due to the success of Women+ Connect.
In Q2, the average Primetime amount included on each ride declined by 25% versus Q1, and that contributed to better conversion rates. So, the company is working on new features for regular riders, one of which is called Price Lock, where riders can buy a monthly subscription with a fixed price for their usual routes. Primetime won’t disappear completely, but it will make the process more predictable through Price Lock.
The Lyft Media segment is also doing well, with revenue up over 70%. It signed 44 new deals in the second quarter, including T-Mobile and Activision, and re-signed several more, including Amazon, Fidelity, and NBCUniversal.
Total revenue in Q2 was $1.44 billion, with a 40.64% year-over-year improvement. The earnings per share were $0.24.
53 hedge funds are long in the company, with the highest stake at $112,253,724 by Appaloosa Management LP. It is well-positioned to capitalize on the growth of autonomous vehicles due to its existing network and expertise in fleet management.
ClearBridge Multi Cap Growth Strategy made the following comment about Lyft, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT) in its Q2 2023 investor letter:
“The sale of rideshare provider Lyft, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT), similar to our moves in communication services, prunes a smaller position to consolidate the portfolio in our highest conviction ideas. We initially purchased Lyft in May 2021 when rideshare volumes were still depressed due to COVID-19. While Lyft was a clear #2 behind Uber in domestic rideshare, we believed it was a cleaner way to play the U.S. recovery due to the focused nature of its business. However, poor execution and the uneven nature of the U.S. recovery, with West Coast markets where Lyft has historically had greater exposure lagging due to a lack of return to office work, further weakened its market position. In March, Lyft announced co-founder Logan Green would step down as CEO with David Risher, a former Amazon executive, taking his place. While Risher has laid out ambitions to drive Lyft’s market share higher, we believe doing so will require more than a few quarters fix. Furthermore, while the company has looked for areas to right size their cost base, we see necessary investments in price, service levels and product differentiation to drive this turnaround further pushing out the path to improved profitability.”
