Groupon Shares Climb After Strong Earnings

Groupon (GRPN) released its fourth quarter earnings report before opening bell this morning, posting 7 cents per share in adjusted earnings on $934.9 million in revenue. Analysts had been looking for 3 cents per share and $913 million in revenue. In the year-ago quarter, the company reported $917.2 million in revenue.

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Groupon posts strong results

GAAP losses amounted to 9 cents per share, while the net loss was $50.2 million. Fourth quarter gross billings amounted to $1.7 billion a slight decline from $1.71 billion in the year-ago quarter, while adjusted EBITDA was $80.6 million. The decline in gross billings was the result of dispositions and country exits due to the firm’s restructuring initiatives. However, the acquisition of LivingSocial partially offset those impacts. Global units sold fell 0.4% to 62 million due to country exits and international restructuring. North America units grew 3%, while Europe, the Middle East and Africa recorded a 6% increase in units during the fourth quarter.

The company added 5.2 million net new North American customers during the fourth quarter, bringing the total number of active customers in North America to 31.1 million. Globally, Groupon had 52.7 million customers at the end of the year.

“In 2016, our concentrated focus on key strategic initiatives provided a strong foundation for Groupon going forward and resulted in a streamlined global operation, a healthier Goods business, improved customer service and strong customer acquisitions after a successful online and offline marketing strategy,” Chief Executive Officer Rich Williams said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing to invest in the Groupon brand and unlocking the true potential of our business as we make Groupon the daily habit in local commerce.”

Groupon guides for 2017

For this year, Groupon expects $1.3 billion to $1.35 billion in gross profits, which represents growth of $40 million to $90 million year over year. The company is looking for adjusted EBITDA of $200 million to $240 million for this year, which is an increase of $16 million to $56 million compared to 2016. It plans to exit 11 countries this year and will begin reporting the countries as discontinued operations in the first quarter of this year.

Shares of Groupon soared by as much as 11.38% to $4.21 in premarket trades this morning.

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