Key Takeaways
- Wayfair reported that it added customers and reduced expenses, helping it post better-than-expected fourth-quarter results.
- The online furnishing retailer’s adjusted net loss was narrower than forecast, while its revenue for the latest quarter beat estimates.
- CEO Niraj Shah said Wayfair benefited from job cuts and other steps to improve efficiencies.
Wayfair Inc. (W) shares jumped Thursday after the online home furnishing retailer posted a lower-than-expected net loss as it cut costs and added customers.
The company reported a fourth-quarter adjusted net loss of 11 cents a share, with total net revenue advancing 0.4% to $3.11 billion. Both were better than analysts anticipated.
The company said it returned to an increase in its number of active customers in the latest quarter, rising by 1.4% to 22.4 million as of the end of last year. Orders by repeat customers gained 5.9% to 9 million in the quarter, and those customers placed 79.4% of all orders, up from 77.4% in 2022. However, average order value declined to $276 from $283 year-over-year.
In a letter to shareholders, CEO Niraj Shah said that the steps the company has taken, including three rounds of layoffs since August 2022, have helped it improve efficiencies. He said that “while it is early, it does seem like we are getting more done, and faster, and at a lower cost.”
Shah added that the company viewed 2023 as the “Year of the Reset,” and that “the hardest work of the reset is now behind us and 2024 has us moving forward adroitly.”
Shares of Wayfair were 10% higher at $53.65 at 3:01 p.m. ET Thursday.