CHICAGO (AP) — Groupon, the online deals company, posted a larger-than-expected fourth-quarter loss on Wednesday and a weaker-than-expected revenue outlook, sending its shares down more than 25 percent in after-hours trading.
The forecast fed investor worry that people were tiring of the many online restaurant, spa and Botox deals that Groupon built its business on, and that the company’s efforts to broaden into an e-commerce powerhouse had not been paying off.
Groupon, based in Chicago, booked a loss of $81.1 million, or 12 cents a share, in the October to December period. That compares with a loss of $65.4 million, also 12 cents a share, in the fourth quarter a year earlier, when it had fewer shares outstanding.
Analysts expected a loss of 2 cents a share, according to FactSet.
Revenue rose 30 percent to $638.3 million from $492.2 million. Wall Street expected revenue of $639.8 million.
For the current quarter, Groupon expects revenue of $560 million to $610 million, which translates to a range of flat to 9 percent higher than in the year-earlier period. Analysts expected revenue of $646.8 million.
Gross billings, a closely watched figure that shows the total amount customers spent on Groupon’s deals, increased 24 percent in the quarter to $1.52 billion from $1.23 billion a year earlier.
“Record billings growth this quarter is a clear signal that customers love Groupon,” said Andrew Mason, the company’s chief executive, in a statement. “We will continue to invest in growth through 2013 as we see new opportunities to give our customers what they want.”
Groupon’s stock fell as much as $1.56 to $4.41 in after-hours trading. Earlier, the stock closed up 43 cents at $5.98 before the release of the earnings report.
Groupon Shares Fall 25% in Late Trading
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Groupon Shares Fall 25% in Late Trading
