As consumers changed their shopping patterns in a market less threatened by COVID-19, Wayfair took a step back in both revenues and earnings during the third quarter, although profits did beat a Wall Street estimate.
Adjusted for one-time changes, Wayfair stated, diluted earnings per share were 14 cents versus $2.30 in the 2020 period.
A Zacks Investment Research analyst consensus estimate called for adjusted diluted earnings per share of four cents, but even with the earnings beat, net sales fell a bit short of a $3.23 billion sales estimate.
Total net revenue of $3.12 billion decreased 18.7% in the quarter year over year, Wayfair reported, while U.S. net revenue of $2.59 billion decreased 20.8%. Loss from operations was $69.8 million versus income from operations of $221.9 million in the year-before period.
“Wayfair delivered $3.1 billion in net revenue and over $100 million of adjusted EBITDA in the third quarter,” said Niraj Shah, CEO, co-founder and co-chairman, Wayfair, in announcing the financial results. “As various geographies reopened post-pandemic, consumers naturally shifted some spend towards travel and entertainment and from e-commerce towards brick and mortar. Demand and interest in the home remains resilient, but it will take a few more quarters for our growth, and e-commerce growth in general, to get back to normal. Our long-term vision is in sharp focus coming out of the pandemic period. The initiatives required to realize it are in flight, even as we work through near-term macro challenges like supply chain congestion and related inflation. We are, as ever, focused on the long-term, balancing strong growth and profitability over years not quarters, and solidifying our position as the definitive destination for the home.”
