Peloton shares plummet again after firm reports mounting losses

Peloton’s share price dropped around 10 per cent this week after the firm reported growing losses and projected lower-than-expected revenue for the next financial quarter. The firm says it expects to become profitable by 2023.

Late last year, Peloton’s Christmas ad resulted in $1bn being knocked off the indoor bike and treadmill business’s market value in 48 hours.

The advert, in which a man buys his wife a Peloton for Christmas, was widely mocked and criticised for sexism and reinforcing body stereotypes. Some described the woman’s expression as akin to that of someone in a hostage situation – an element that inspired a piss-taking ad for Ryan Reynolds’ gin featuring the same actress.

The firm’s shares subsequently recovered, but after the latest drop are now trading fractionally below the firm’s $29 initial public offering price.

CNBC reports that Peloton this week reported a widening of net losses to $55.4m from $55.1m a year earlier. And while revenue grew 77 per cent to $466.3m from $262.9m a year earlier, this represented a slowdown compared to the previous quarter, where revenue had more than doubled year on year.

Peloton is predicting revenue of $470-480m for the third quarter, and $1.53bn to $1.55bn total revenue for 2020.

“At Peloton, we believe we can achieve both growth and profitability over time,” said Peloton CFO Jill Woodworth. “We’re prioritising our subscriber growth over profitability.”

The firm now has more than 712,000 subscribers, up 96 per cent from about 362,000 a year ago.