LYFT yesterday reported record quarterly revenue of more than $1bn (£772.3m), but the ride-hailing company forecast slower growth in the new year as ridership growth stagnated in the second half of 2019.

The company did not change its target to achieve profitability on an adjusted basis by the end of 2021 despite its larger rival Uber last week moving forward by a year its profitability target.

Lyft reported revenue of $1.02bn in the fourth quarter, ahead of analysts who expected $984m in quarterly revenue, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

For now, the company continues to make losses, reporting an adjusted net loss of $121m.

Lyft solely operates in the US and some Canadian cities. Its active rider customer base in the fourth quarter grew to 22.9m from 22.3m the previous quarter. That compares with Uber's global 111m active platform users in the same period.

While Lyft's ridership grew by more than six per cent in the first half of 2019, growth in the second half slowed to around 2.5 per cent.

Uber originally echoed Lyft in saying it would be profitable on an adjusted basis by the end of 2021. But the company last week moved that target forward by a year, now promising investors it would be profitable on that metric in the fourth quarter of 2020.

Both companies went public last year — Lyft in March, Uber in May — with many early employees and investors selling their shares.

Both San Francisco-based firms are pursuing different roads in search of profitability, with Uber pouring money into side businesses and Lyft remaining focused solely on moving people around.

Reuters

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