Is Wayfair Having Serious Problems Scaling?

Companies and Brands

Published: May 2, 2019 11:45 am

Last Updated: January 30, 2020 9:14 pm

Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W) reported its most recent quarterly results before the market opened on Thursday. Overall, the company lost a fair amount this quarter, nearly double the amount from last year, but in this case with more sales. If anything, Wayfair is showing that it is having a hard time scaling.

The company said that it a net loss of $1.62 per share and $1.94 billion in revenue, compared with consensus estimates that called for a net loss of $1.60 per share and $1.92 billion in revenue, as well as the −$0.91 per share and $1.40 billion posted in the same period of last year.

During the first quarter, direct retail net revenue increased $542.3 million to $1.9 billion, up 39.0% year over year.

The number of active customers in the Direct Retail business reached 16.4 million. Also, last 12 months net revenue per active customer was $442, an increase of 2.3% year over year.

Orders per customer totaled 1.85 for the first quarter, compared to 1.79 for the same quarter of 2018. Repeat customers placed 66.0% of total orders, compared to 64.3% last year.

Niraj Shah, CEO, co-founder and co-chair of Wayfair, commented:

We are excited to report a strong start to 2019 marked by another consecutive quarter of exceptional growth with Direct Retail net revenue up $542 million dollars, or 39%, year over year, for a total net revenue of $1.9 billion. Our ongoing investments in building our logistics infrastructure, deepening our product offering, and finding new ways to serve our customer are just a few of the many areas that are driving the momentum we are seeing today. Once again, Way Day, our biggest retail event of the year, was a tremendous success for the business breaking our record for the highest revenue grossing day in company history. We look forward to the sizeable opportunity ahead as we continue to transform the experience of shopping for the home and remain well positioned to take share of the dollars that are coming online in the home category.

Shares of Wayfair were last seen down nearly 11% at $146.27, in a 52-week range of $73.64 to $173.72. The consensus price target is $159.62.